Partner Article

4 Skills that are relevant to successful manager

Managers are important tools of any large or small business.

Every company needs a good manager to keep the employees together, making them work effectively towards achieving the company’s goals.

Efficient managers are equipped with a combination of hard skills which include the technical aspects of a job and soft skills which are important personal skills required to be a manager.

These, mixed together with experience and knowledge will allow you to become a manager in the first place.

It takes a long time and lots of commitment as well as effort to be able to reach a level of competency that will allow you to fully succeed as a manager.

Not everybody has what it takes to be in charge; otherwise we would all be managers.

Many are the skills required to be a successful manager. It is also important to bear in mind that skills might vary according to the specific field of work. Here we give you 4 of the most relevant general skills to succeed as a manager.

1. Strategic planning

This is an essential business skill to be able to lead a company. A good manager needs to have the ability to turn a long term vision into a definite business strategy.

This skill can be developed by:

• Create a strong vision that leads a company towards a successful future.
• Share the vision with the team, clearly outlining where you are going and how you are planning to get there.
• Involving both seasoned and new staff members in the planning to gain different perspectives.
• Encouraging learning through mentoring and development opportunities.

2. People management

As a manager you have to have a great understanding of your people’s skills to effectively reviewing their performance and giving out promotions if applicable.

Ways to develop this particular skill are:

• Get to know your team as a single individual.
• Be observant and find out each individual strength and weakness.
• Let them ask questions and express their opinion. You can do so by organizing frequent short meetings.

3. Managing change

Change is the only constant of our lives and nowadays it has become an ongoing business challenge.

To be a successful manager able to lead your company into the future, you need to understand change. First of all you need to recognize it, embrace it and find a non-disruptive way to move along with it.

At the same time managers have the responsibility to explain changes to the team and to help them understand the necessity of it for the benefit of the company. Managers have the duty to inspire their employees to embrace changes.

Develop this skill by:

• Planning and decision making regarding new changes.
• Providing classes, further training and other resources to help your team understanding and managing changes.
• Sharing information and providing opportunities for discussion. This way you will keep your team informed, acknowledged and positive towards it. Resistance to change is due to fear of unknown.

4. Be a role model

Being a successful manager requires authenticity. Your team will be more inspired and dedicated if they see your own commitment and belief in what you are putting across.

You can do that by:

• Becoming self-aware and understanding your own strengths and weaknesses. This will help you to manage more effectively using delegation and other resources.
• Seeking frequent feedback from coworkers, family, friends and coaches.
• Aligning your business and management strategies so that your business plan and staff development initiatives are in sync.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Eliza Rafle .