Q: Will this transition never end? I agreed to train Eric and take on my new role; now I am doing two jobs and it seems that my old manager just won’t let me go. Help?
A: Congratulations on your new opportunity and I hope that you will soon be able to put your full time and attention into your new role. It sounds as if your former manager doesn’t want you to leave. There may be several reasons why, including the likelihood that you were actually doing more than the one job that Eric now has. I wonder if you also may be reluctant to give up your former role: many employees fear that new person isn’t going to “do” the job the same way.
It sounds like you didn’t clearly define the transition when you took on the new role. Don’t beat yourself up—focus on the future:
- Have you asked Eric to define his level of “readiness” to take responsibility for his new role? If he says he’s ready, ask him to tell his boss that he no longer needs your day-to-day help. If Eric says “no” and needs more help, ask him to write down exactly the help that he needs and ask him to schedule weekly or bi-weekly calls to address.
- Has Eric followed though on the support that you have provided? Yes or no.
- Is Eric’s manager “managing” his transition? Remember: your role is to transfer your workload, not develop Eric.
- Is Eric competent or is he a “hiring mistake”?
The bottom line is simple: you can’t do two jobs and a transition that slides from weeks 
into months is not a transition. Enlist the help of your new manager. After all, you don’t want to jeopardize your quality of work by spending too much time with Eric.