There is a saying; “good leaders aren’t born, they’re made”. The same holds true for managers. People acquire their management skills through learning from their previous mangers, a training class or two, or like most of us, just plain trial and error. Just like your golf game, you probably have picked up some bad habits along the way. This article will touch upon two items; evaluating your management style, and then improving it.
The evaluation of your management style begins by looking at you. You want to identify your management strengths and weaknesses. This sounds simple, but requires some real reflection, and honesty. Remember, the first step towards recovery is admitting you have a problem. Make your list, strengths on one side, weaknesses on the other. An example would be you feel you are a hard worker, and that is a strength. You have trouble writing performance evaluations, which is a weakness. The object of this exercise is to identify those items which to build upon (strengths), and those items, which need attention (weaknesses).
Next, you want to identify your predominant management style. It depends on which book you read as to how many management styles exist. This article will use four styles; directing, coaching, supporting, and delegating. The directing style has the manager providing specific instructions about roles, goals, and closely supervises the individual’s performance. The directing style is appropriate when time is short, and managers may not have time to explain things. It is also appropriate when there are inexperienced personnel, and they need to be managed closely.
Coaching has the manager explain decisions, solicits suggestions from the individual, praises the individual, and continues to direct task accomplishment. Input from the individual is considered however, the final decision lies with the manager. This style is used when team members are beginning to grasp their assignments, feel more confident about their roles in the organization, and need reassurance to “keep going”.
The supporting style has the manager elicit ideas, listens to individuals, and encourages self-reliant decision-making and problem solving. Managers will use this style when they have time for consultations and who are dealing with experienced personnel. When team members help create a plan, it becomes – at least in part – their plan. The ownership creates a strong incentive to invest the necessary effort to make the plan work.
The final style, delegating, has the manager empower the individual to act independently and provides the proper resources to get the job done. Delegating can be used with experienced, motivated personnel, or used when wanting to create a learning experience for their personnel. Which style best describes you?
We’ve identified our strengths and weaknesses, and our predominant management style, now we have to do something with this information. We’ll take what we learned about ourselves and discuss how we can use this information to improve our management style.
We’ve concluded that we have some definite managerial strengths, and some areas where we need some improvement. Now we need to do something about it. First, we need to want to improve our weaknesses. This takes commitment on your part. Change, even for the better, is difficult to do at times. Any changes we want to make should be slow, and made with a goal in mind. For example, we may want to become a better listener.
A problem may be we’re always doing something, shuffling papers, checking your calendar, etc. while people are talking to us. We’re not really listening. Next time someone comes into your office and wants to speak to you, slide back from your desk, fold your hands, and tell yourself not to touch anything, and concentrate on the speaker. It may be difficult at first, but with practice, it will become second nature.
Next, get to know your people. I’m sure you have the basics down, spouse’s name, number of children, where they are from, etc. You need to know “them”. You need to go deeper, find out what makes them tick, what motivates them, what makes them come to work everyday other than a paycheck. Motivation is the key to productivity, and initiative. Some employees are motivated by giving them challenging tasks; others are motivated by “thank you” or a “that –a –boy”. Do not underestimate the power of a thank you. It makes people feel appreciated. Yet others are motivated by awards or recognition during department meetings or company newsletters. The key to motivation is that each of your employees is motivated by something different. Your challenge is to find out what that something is.
How do we improve our management style? First, remember there is no best management style because people have different needs for direction and support. They come to the job with different levels of competence and commitment. The appropriate management style depends on the situation. In certain situations, it is appropriate to coach. In other situations, after setting a clear goal, the leader can delegate. Sometimes just support is needed. In other cases, to develop someone’s skills, direction is needed. The key is; be flexible. Just as a shovel is not effective for all of your trenching needs, neither is just one management style.
One of the best pieces of advice I can give is; read. There are thousands of books out there. They cover every topic imaginable from effective communication to motivating employees to how to dress. Read trade publications to keep up with the latest trends and technology in your industry. Also, attempt to attend a training seminar or two throughout the year. Whether your own in-house trainer provides the training or it is outsourced, this is another excellent way to improve yourself.
Managers are challenged everyday to be more productive, more cost efficient, and to retain their people to cut training costs. Take a look at yourself, and change those things you want to improve. Get to know your people, and watch productivity grow. Lastly, remember; to be a good manager takes work and time.
About the Author
Jeffrey J. Walter: 13 years in the Army serving in many leadership roles, training suborinates
Industry Experience: 2 years w/major competitor: corporate trainer, personnel administrator, and field supervision
MasTec: Marketing, Business development, personnel development
Contact: jwalter@mastec.com
The evaluation of your management style begins by looking at you. You want to identify your management strengths and weaknesses. This sounds simple, but requires some real reflection, and honesty. Remember, the first step towards recovery is admitting you have a problem. Make your list, strengths on one side, weaknesses on the other. An example would be you feel you are a hard worker, and that is a strength. You have trouble writing performance evaluations, which is a weakness. The object of this exercise is to identify those items which to build upon (strengths), and those items, which need attention (weaknesses).
Next, you want to identify your predominant management style. It depends on which book you read as to how many management styles exist. This article will use four styles; directing, coaching, supporting, and delegating. The directing style has the manager providing specific instructions about roles, goals, and closely supervises the individual’s performance. The directing style is appropriate when time is short, and managers may not have time to explain things. It is also appropriate when there are inexperienced personnel, and they need to be managed closely.
Coaching has the manager explain decisions, solicits suggestions from the individual, praises the individual, and continues to direct task accomplishment. Input from the individual is considered however, the final decision lies with the manager. This style is used when team members are beginning to grasp their assignments, feel more confident about their roles in the organization, and need reassurance to “keep going”.
The supporting style has the manager elicit ideas, listens to individuals, and encourages self-reliant decision-making and problem solving. Managers will use this style when they have time for consultations and who are dealing with experienced personnel. When team members help create a plan, it becomes – at least in part – their plan. The ownership creates a strong incentive to invest the necessary effort to make the plan work.
The final style, delegating, has the manager empower the individual to act independently and provides the proper resources to get the job done. Delegating can be used with experienced, motivated personnel, or used when wanting to create a learning experience for their personnel. Which style best describes you?
We’ve identified our strengths and weaknesses, and our predominant management style, now we have to do something with this information. We’ll take what we learned about ourselves and discuss how we can use this information to improve our management style.
We’ve concluded that we have some definite managerial strengths, and some areas where we need some improvement. Now we need to do something about it. First, we need to want to improve our weaknesses. This takes commitment on your part. Change, even for the better, is difficult to do at times. Any changes we want to make should be slow, and made with a goal in mind. For example, we may want to become a better listener.
A problem may be we’re always doing something, shuffling papers, checking your calendar, etc. while people are talking to us. We’re not really listening. Next time someone comes into your office and wants to speak to you, slide back from your desk, fold your hands, and tell yourself not to touch anything, and concentrate on the speaker. It may be difficult at first, but with practice, it will become second nature.
Next, get to know your people. I’m sure you have the basics down, spouse’s name, number of children, where they are from, etc. You need to know “them”. You need to go deeper, find out what makes them tick, what motivates them, what makes them come to work everyday other than a paycheck. Motivation is the key to productivity, and initiative. Some employees are motivated by giving them challenging tasks; others are motivated by “thank you” or a “that –a –boy”. Do not underestimate the power of a thank you. It makes people feel appreciated. Yet others are motivated by awards or recognition during department meetings or company newsletters. The key to motivation is that each of your employees is motivated by something different. Your challenge is to find out what that something is.
How do we improve our management style? First, remember there is no best management style because people have different needs for direction and support. They come to the job with different levels of competence and commitment. The appropriate management style depends on the situation. In certain situations, it is appropriate to coach. In other situations, after setting a clear goal, the leader can delegate. Sometimes just support is needed. In other cases, to develop someone’s skills, direction is needed. The key is; be flexible. Just as a shovel is not effective for all of your trenching needs, neither is just one management style.
One of the best pieces of advice I can give is; read. There are thousands of books out there. They cover every topic imaginable from effective communication to motivating employees to how to dress. Read trade publications to keep up with the latest trends and technology in your industry. Also, attempt to attend a training seminar or two throughout the year. Whether your own in-house trainer provides the training or it is outsourced, this is another excellent way to improve yourself.
Managers are challenged everyday to be more productive, more cost efficient, and to retain their people to cut training costs. Take a look at yourself, and change those things you want to improve. Get to know your people, and watch productivity grow. Lastly, remember; to be a good manager takes work and time.
About the Author
Jeffrey J. Walter: 13 years in the Army serving in many leadership roles, training suborinates
Industry Experience: 2 years w/major competitor: corporate trainer, personnel administrator, and field supervision
MasTec: Marketing, Business development, personnel development
Contact: jwalter@mastec.com
