(FORTUNE Magazine) – Dear Annie: I am an engineer and manager in a smokestack industry, and I'm considering a promotion to a job where all the people who will be reporting to me came up through the ranks and are wary of college-educated "suits." This is partly due to the fact they were jerked around by an incompetent manager in the past. How can I get the suspicious people who will make or break me to accept me? HIDING MY DIPLOMA

Dear Hiding: In an ideal world, nobody would have to spend a lot of time and energy repairing the damage done by previous management. Alas, here on Earth, it's one of the problems that keeps human resources consultants in BMWs. "You have to face the fact that earning these employees' trust is going to take time," says Val Arnold, a senior vice president at Personnel Decisions Inc. in Minneapolis. "There is no 'I feel your pain' catch phrase that's going to erase suspicions founded on a bad experience with a former boss." He suggests you do three things. First, you have to learn to be comfortable with authority: "The worst thing you can do is to try to win these workers over by trying to be one of the guys. There has to be respect for the position." Second, Arnold urges you to come right out and tell these folks that you know they've had a rough time and that you intend to treat them fairly. Then do it. "Be reliable, don't make promises you can't or won't keep, and hold everybody equally accountable for results," he says. And don't get discouraged. Overcoming these folks' misgivings could take years.

Organizational psychologist Harry Levinson, head of the Levinson Institute in Waltham, Massachusetts, thinks it would help to talk with each of your subordinates individually to find out what their concerns and expectations are. Then meet with the group as a whole, summarize what they've told you, and make clear what you can--and can't--do about what's bugging them. "You should spell out, too, what your boss expects from you and what you need from them in order to meet those expectations," Levinson says. "You will be tested. People will try all kinds of ways to figure out if you mean what you say, so be as forthright and consistent as you possibly can. But resist the temptation to bend over backwards to please anybody. This isn't a popularity contest." Above all, hang in there, and good luck.

Dear Annie: A few issues ago, William Morin wrote a column in your magazine in which he said there are companies that have found humane ways of managing change. "It's up to you to find them," he added. Any tips on how I might find such companies? LOOKING HIGH AND LOW

Dear Looking: Sure. First of all, Bill says that what he meant was that lots of companies are trying hard to soften the blow of repeated reengineerings by offering their employees the kind of training that will give them portable skills. This is something you should ask about in job interviews, obviously, but it never hurts to do some homework beforehand. Visit the Web home pages of companies you might like to work for and check out the hypertext that tells you what kinds of career development opportunities they offer.

Rick Maurer, author of a book on change management called Beyond the Wall of Resistance, suggests that a few hours in a good public library could give you a list of terrific possible employers. Take a look at Robert Levering and Milton Moskowitz's The 100 Best Companies to Work For in America (or buy it in paperback for $12.95). A periodical search--which many libraries will do for you on an online service like Nexis or Dialog--will turn up heaps of information on what's going on in almost any large company, including what kind of culture you'd be getting into if you worked there.

Two other ideas: Professional conferences, such as those held by the Association for Quality and Participation in Cincinnati (513-381-1959), can be a gold mine of information, and you don't even have to go: They sell audiotapes by mail, on which panelists from great companies talk about how they manage change. "But probably the best thing you can do," Maurer says, "is go to trade shows in your industry and stand around with a cup of coffee in your hand, schmoozing with people. If you meet someone you seem to have a lot in common with and you ask him or her, 'So what's it like to work at XYZ Corp.?' and the person rolls his eyes and groans, you know you can cross that company off your list."

Dear Annie: Eight years ago I founded a high-tech company in Italy, and partly thanks to a government grant, we have a great product and plenty of ideas, patents, and skilled personnel, but we need venture capital, which is nowhere to be found in Europe. Should we seek backers in the U.S., or do you have any other suggestions? SERGEI

Dear Sergei: Startup companies raised a record $10.1 billion in venture capital in the U.S. in 1996, according to a new study by Coopers & Lybrand, and there is so much money floating around that plenty of entrepreneurs from abroad are moving their companies to places like Silicon Valley and Minneapolis to get hold of some of it. I am assuming, however, that you want to stay in Italy, and I don't blame you. So I called James Atwell, who runs Coopers & Lybrand's national venture-capital practice in San Jose, and gave him a detailed description of your company and your problem. It's a brave man who will let his phone number be published in a national magazine, but here goes: Atwell wants you to call him at 408-295-1020.

In the meantime, are you really sure there is no venture capital in Italy? If I were you, I'd get my hands on a copy of The Venture Capital Report Guide to Venture Capital in Europe ($125 from Pitman Publishing, 128 Long Acre, London WC2E 9AN, phone 011-71-3797383), which is packed with details on more than 500 sources of seed money on the Continent. I'd also get in touch with the venture capital arm of Olivetti (Via Jervis, 10015 Ivrea, Italy), which exists solely to sink molti lire into ventures such as yours.