Day-to-day people management is increasingly the responsibility of front-line managers, not HR professionals. But managers are often poorly prepared for these responsibilities; they receive little training (and sometimes have little interest!) in HR. People management is never easy, and it is particularly challenging in COVID-19's "next normal" workplace, where managers must engage diverse employees across a wide range of working arrangements. This book focuses on the special relationship that line managers have with their employees and describes managers' responsibilities across the entire employee lifecycle - from front-end recruiting and hiring through to long-term retention. The content is grounded in rigorous academic research, but the book's conversational tone conveys basic principles without technical jargon. Each chapter includes Manager's Checkpoints to help readers apply the material to their own workplace, and Manager's Knots that address gray areas inherent in people management.

The book is designed for any reader currently working as a line manager, or aspiring to a managerial role, who wants to improve their people management skills.

Combined with a complete instructor package, the book provides different types of activities to accompany each chapter: Some Assembly Required, In the News, and Undercover Manager. The activities can be found in the Instructor Resources Download Hub, and are designed to align with student cohorts with varying levels of experience.