Managing upwards in higher education, part 2: relational and personal boundary skills

In the first part of this series, I focused on the structural and political side of managing upwards, including how to understand your manager’s priorities, bring solutions rather than problems, let them own the win and know the rules better than they do.

This second part turns to the relational and personal boundary skills that are equally important for sustaining a constructive relationship with your manager. These are the everyday behaviours and decisions that protect your integrity, build goodwill and ensure that your time is spent where it makes the greatest difference.

Hold your line on integrity

Decide in advance where your professional boundaries lie. Universities are environments of competing demands, and there will be times when pressure to meet deadlines, targets or expectations conflicts with your sense of what is right. Thinking about these boundaries beforehand makes it easier to respond consistently when those moments arise.

Holding your line on integrity does not mean being confrontational. It means being clear about what you will and will not do and explaining your reasoning professionally. Managers often (but not always) respect colleagues who can justify a position while still seeking constructive outcomes.

One example is the pursuit of accreditation. These processes depend on detailed documentation but they also rely heavily on the narrative that frames an institution’s achievements. There is nothing wrong with presenting work in the best possible light but the line is crossed when the narrative becomes more of a story than a reflection of reality. On one occasion, I felt that the case being prepared was not sufficiently robust, and the only way forward would have been to stretch the narrative beyond what I believed was accurate. I raised this privately with my line manager, making clear that a stronger bid could be developed in time. The decision was taken to wait rather than push forward prematurely.

Nobody likes to air their dirty laundry in public but that does not mean you should not do your washing. Protecting integrity sometimes requires difficult, confidential conversations that prioritise long-term credibility over short-term gains.

By knowing your limits, you protect yourself from making choices under pressure that could damage your reputation in the long run. Integrity is a resource you carry throughout your career, and maintaining it ensures that short-term pressures do not erode your reputation.

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Carry the biscuits

Relationships in universities extend beyond formal reporting lines. Taking time to connect with colleagues at all levels builds goodwill and creates a network of support. Learn people’s names, acknowledge their contributions and show appreciation to those whose work is often overlooked, such as administrative staff, facilities teams and support services.

This principle is one I first learned outside higher education. My father worked in local government as an engineer, responsible for roads, lighting and waste management across Somerset. Each year, he would buy biscuits, take them down to the basement where the cleaners worked, and share a cup of tea with them. He knew the political leaders and senior executives but he also knew the names of those on the lowest pay. His respect came not only from his technical achievements but from his ability to connect with everyone, regardless of role.

That example has stayed with me. You cannot manage by fear, nor can you build influence only through committees and formal structures. Respect grows when people believe you see and value them. Carrying the biscuits is a reminder that credibility often comes from the goodwill of those around you, and that goodwill cannot be faked.

By investing in these relationships, you create support that extends far beyond your formal job description and strengthens your standing in ways that official recognition rarely can.

Manage your availability

Being constantly available can make you the default choice for extra tasks or difficult problems that others should handle. Managers, like anyone else, often follow the path of least resistance. If you respond instantly to every request, you risk becoming the easy option rather than the right one.

I first learned this lesson in the mid-1990s when I completed probation as a police officer and began independent patrol. Excited to be on my own, I grabbed the radio for every call that came in. For a while, it was exhilarating but soon I returned to the station to find my basket overflowing with files and follow-up work. The weight of my own enthusiasm became unmanageable.

The same dynamic appeared again in higher education. Early in my career at the University of Portsmouth, I became the default person to take on extra teaching, at one point running nine modules simultaneously. Eventually, I had to admit defeat and told my line manager I could not keep going. His advice was simple but lasting: “You need to learn to say no.”

Boundaries around availability are not signs of disengagement. They are essential to ensuring that your time and energy are directed where they have the greatest impact.

These final three strategies (although I am sure there are others) focus on the relational and personal boundaries that shape how you work with your manager. They are about protecting your integrity, building goodwill and making sure your time is spent where it has the most value.

Managing upwards is not a single skill but a set of practices that evolve over time. Some are structural, rooted in policies and priorities, while others are relational, rooted in people and trust. In practice, these are just ways that help you embrace the realities of academic life.

Good and poor managers exist in every type of institution, from long-established to newly created. You cannot choose the style of manager you get but you can choose how you respond. By applying these strategies with consistency, you can create working relationships that are both sustainable and constructive, protecting your career while contributing to the wider success of your institution.

Tom Chapman is principal teaching fellow at the University of Southampton.