12-week coaching for first-time tech managers
Lead your team well without sacrificing your evenings
Reset your workload, run useful one-to-ones, delegate clearly, and handle difficult conversations with a practical system built for your first year in management.
Lead your team without letting the job take over your life
By the end of 12 weeks, you will have a clear way to manage the work, the people, and the pressure.
Finish the week without carrying work into every evening
Reset what belongs on your plate, protect time for management, and stop treating every request as urgent.
Run one-to-ones that solve real problems
Turn each conversation into clear decisions, useful support, and agreed next steps instead of another vague catch-up.
Delegate work without losing control of it
Set clear outcomes, ownership, and check-ins so your team can deliver without you hovering or taking the task back.
Handle difficult conversations sooner
Address missed expectations, poor performance, and team tension with calm, specific words before problems grow.
Stay steady when senior leaders apply pressure
Give clear updates, push back on unrealistic demands, and make trade-offs without second-guessing every decision.
Know what to do each week
Build a practical management rhythm for planning, one-to-ones, feedback, delegation, and follow-through that lasts beyond the programme.
What changed for first-time managers
I was still doing most of my old engineering workload because delegation felt slower than doing it myself. By week four, I had reassigned two recurring projects with clear ownership and stopped working after 7 pm. My team stepped up, and I got roughly six hours back each week.
I had postponed a difficult conversation with an underperforming product designer for nearly a month. The script helped me say exactly what needed to change without making it personal. We agreed three specific actions, and her delivery was back on track within three weeks.
My one-to-ones used to be rushed status updates that solved nothing. I switched to the SteadyLead structure, and within a fortnight my team were raising blockers before they became problems. I now finish every one-to-one with clear actions instead of a longer list in my own notebook.
Built for the promotion nobody prepares you for
SteadyLead Twelve was created by Hannah Mercer after she watched capable developers, designers and product managers get promoted, keep most of their old workload, then quietly spend their evenings catching up. The problem was rarely ability. They had been given a bigger job without a practical way to run it. Hannah spent 14 years leading technology and product teams in UK software and fintech companies, including seven years managing new managers. She has handled missed deadlines, strained one-to-ones, underperformance and the pressure to deliver through rapid growth. That experience shaped a twelve-week programme built around the work managers face every week, not leadership theory. You will leave sessions with decisions made, conversations prepared and tools you can use the next morning. The group is capped at eight managers. Three private sessions give you space to work through sensitive issues. Between sessions, you can ask for help before a difficult conversation becomes another late night.
What your £1,850 includes
SteadyLead Twelve gives you twelve weeks of coaching, tools and direct support. You will leave with a manageable workload, clearer conversations and a repeatable way to lead your team without giving up your evenings.
- 12 weekly 75-minute live group coaching sessions focused on the situations you are handling now
- 3 private 50-minute coaching sessions for workload pressure, team issues and conversations that need confidential preparation
- A first-year manager operating system for weekly planning, priorities, one-to-ones, delegation and follow-up
- Ready-to-use scripts for setting expectations, giving feedback, pushing back on extra work and addressing missed commitments
- Practical templates for one-to-one agendas, delegation briefs, workload reviews, decision logs and difficult conversation plans
- Weekday between-session support for questions, conversation preparation and help when a management issue cannot wait
- A personal 90-day action plan to help you keep the new habits working after the programme ends
Coaching Programmes
Practical support for the workload, conversations and decisions that arrive with your first management role.
A 12-week programme with weekly group coaching, three private sessions, manager scripts, planning tools and between-session support.
A private 90-minute session to map the manager's workload, reset priorities and create a delegation plan for the next four weeks.
Two private 60-minute sessions covering preparation, wording, delivery and follow-up for one specific workplace conversation.
A private 12-week SteadyLead Twelve cohort for up to eight newly promoted managers from one UK technology company.
Three months of fortnightly group coaching and message support for graduates of SteadyLead Twelve.
Get your workload and team under control in 12 weeks
Practical coaching for first-time managers who want to lead well without giving every evening back to work.
SteadyLead Twelve
A 12-week coaching programme for UK technology managers leading teams of 4 to 10 people.
- 12 weekly live group coaching sessions
- 3 private coaching sessions focused on your real management challenges
- A clear plan to reset your workload and stop carrying your old role
- Practical scripts for feedback, delegation, conflict, and difficult conversations
- Simple structures for useful one-to-ones and team follow-through
- Weekly planning tools for balancing delivery, people, and senior requests
- Between-session support when a conversation or decision cannot wait
- A repeatable management system for the rest of your first year
Questions before you join SteadyLead Twelve
Is this right for me if I was promoted recently and still do a lot of hands-on work?
Yes. SteadyLead Twelve is built for UK technology managers promoted from individual contributor roles within the past six months. It is especially useful if you still carry delivery work while managing 4 to 10 people. You will decide what to keep, delegate or stop so management does not become a second job done in the evenings.
How much time will the programme take each week?
Allow 90 minutes for the weekly live group session and around 30 minutes to apply the tools to work already in your diary. You will also have three private coaching sessions across the 12 weeks. There is no heavy coursework. You will use the scripts, agendas and planning tools in real one-to-ones, delegation conversations and weekly planning.
How can I justify the £1,850 cost?
The fee covers 12 weeks of live group coaching, three private coaching sessions, practical scripts and planning tools, plus between-session support. The aim is to solve costly problems early: repeated late working, unclear delegation, avoided feedback and team issues that grow while you wait. If your employer has a learning, management development or coaching budget, you can request an invoice and a short business-case summary for approval.
What if my employer will not pay?
You can self-fund your place. Before you do, consider whether the programme addresses a problem worth £1,850 to you: lost evenings, constant catch-up, low confidence and the risk of struggling through your first year without support. If cash flow is the barrier rather than the value, ask about the available payment schedule before enrolling.
Will this work in my type of technology company?
The programme is designed for managers in UK software, fintech and digital product companies. The tools fit teams working in engineering, product, design, data, delivery and related functions. They work in remote, hybrid and office-based teams because the focus is on clear expectations, useful one-to-ones, delegation, feedback and workload decisions rather than one company structure.
What if I have already taken management training?
SteadyLead Twelve is not a library of leadership theory. It helps you apply management skills to the situations on your desk now. Bring an overloaded week, a one-to-one that goes nowhere, a task you cannot hand over or a conversation you keep postponing. You will leave with a specific plan, words to use and support while you put it into practice.
Do I need to tell my manager or share confidential company information?
You do not need your manager's involvement unless your employer is paying or requires approval. You will never be asked to share customer data, commercially sensitive material or identifiable employee details. Workplace situations can be discussed without names, and the group is expected to keep personal discussions confidential.
What happens if I miss a live session or have a difficult delivery week?
The programme is designed for people with unpredictable workloads. If you miss a session, you will receive the catch-up material and can use between-session support to apply the topic to your situation. Your three private sessions also give you space to work through issues that are too sensitive or specific for the group.
Your first year will set the pattern. Make it a sustainable one.
Join SteadyLead Twelve to get control of your workload, lead difficult conversations sooner, and stop using your evenings to catch up. Twelve weeks. Practical support. A clear way to manage your team without running yourself down.
Get in touch
Have a question about SteadyLead Twelve? Send a message and we will get back to you.