“Employees quit their manager; and not their company” read a stupendous employee confession on a very popular human resource magazine. Although manager is pretty much a cool term, it has so much to do with things running down the spine in-order to keep the business moving forward. In a way, managing people is like sex; those talking about it are probably the least doing it. This is one earnest attempt to really get deeper into the stuff and understand what it takes for somebody to become a manager and getting away with things done.
“A Manager is the person responsible for planning and directing the work of a group of individuals, monitoring their work, and taking corrective action when necessary”. Manager is the one who works at different levels directing the employees to get work done out of them. Managing people needs immense sense of concern and diplomacy for they really have to manage people in a way that they are happy and contended in the environment to get the best out of them. Managers are generally referred to as the “Power houses of the companies” as they have full authority to hire / fire employees at their will and also recommend any such actions to the next level of management.
“When you have able managers of high character running businesses about which they are passionate, you can have a dozen or more reporting to you and still have time for an afternoon nap. Conversely, if you have even one person reporting to you who is deceitful, inept or uninterested, you will find yourself with more than you can handle.” Taking a look at all those roles of a manager:
SETTING OBJECTIVES
The Manager primarily sets goals for employees and decides what and how things need to be worked upon to meet those. The manager briefly works on action plans / road maps in order to achieve them which could in turn help the firm with its overall objective. These individual goals are carefully catered in a way that it accounts to the over-all objective of the firm.
ORGANIZE PEOPLE
The manager after setting such careful goals divide work into small chunks in order to achieve them in shorter span of time which could accolade the over-all company objective. The manager selects people to perform such smaller tasks and supervises them until it’s done to perfection.
DEVELOP PEOPLE
Managers take such employees into consideration and enhance them with all experience and knowledge that he/she is bestowed with. Managers experience come really handy in such situation preventing employees from getting into real deep shit. The manager paves way for creativity, professionalism and good manners that could help the employees develop themselves to greater altitudes.
KEEPING IT GOING
The manager has to supervise any such atomic tasks that have been excised amongst his fellow mates in getting quality work done. Manager also has to ensure people working under his skill sets are all happy and contented with the environment which will in-turn keep the whole process moving forward.
Having said all the duties of a manager, it’s not a hard and fast rule across managers to have similar managerial styles. It could ideally differ from person to person depending on the situations and people they handle. So technically speaking, the word “manager” is generic and could be categorized depending on their approach towards people into broader terms:
THE CONTROL FREAK
These types of managers like to keep it all under their palms. They don’t like their subordinates making major decisions or influencing it in any manner. For such managers information is power; they trust none and they stubbornly need things not to go out of control. However, delivering what they want and gaining their confidence and trust are critical for your success while working with them. Give him his status reports daily, even hourly if that’s what it takes. Send him drafts of your emails and memos. Know that it will take twice as long to complete projects because you will have to wait in line with everyone else to have him review your work.
THE AUTOCRAT
These types of managers have only one objective and expect everybody else to oblige by it. He is not worried about others happiness and well-being. For him, he is the king and only he exists. Such managers decide independently of others and are not worried about what others think of them. It’s almost impossible to convince such managers which almost are impossible to even cope with their objectives. Autocrats and Control Freaks have a lot in common, but the difference is that Autocrats are usually pretty clear about what they want. Control Freaks are less definite about what they want, so they try to control everything in order to keep their options open if they need to change direction at a later date.
THE TEAM BUILDER
This is the ideal kind of manager that everybody wants to work with. They are pretty much open to ideas, solicit ideas and come up with some creative strategies. They are an absolute pleasure working with. The best way to work with a Team Builder is to be open with them. Don’t hold anything back. Tell them what you want and what you think. Don’t be afraid to share your ideas and creativity. They may not always agree with you, but know that they will respect any idea you bring to the table. Ask them for help when you need it. Don’t expect them to fix your problems for you, but know that they will be there to help you think through problems and provide you with additional resources so that you can solve them.
In addition to identifying your manager’s leadership style, try to understand his/her values and principles. This assessment will allow you to anticipate what you can expect from him or her, and also to draw the line on where you will adapt to his/her style, and when you will need to stand and say NO.
Things that could prove you a costly miss when you don’t do any of this:
KNOW YOUR MANAGER’S OBJECTIVES
You need to know what he boss expects of you, Make sure that what you’re doing not only meets your own job description but helps the boss achieve his or her own objective.
ASSIST AND SUPPORT YOUR BOSS’S PROFESSIONAL GOALS
A primary job of any employee is to make the boss’s life easier by aligning to his / her professional goals.
BE A TEAM PLAYER
It is important to display a positive attitude; most employers appreciate those professionals who are good listeners that work well with others and contribute to the team effort.
DO YOUR JOB, AND DO IT WELL
Employees who do good work, consistently, efficiently, and professionally, are a joy to manage and ultimately allow their manager to focus on critical issues within the organization.
COMMUNICATE
Be it verbal or written; communicating ideas, deadlines and other messages to your boss efficiently is a must. Effective communication skills can differentiate you as a professional and help your boss gain confidence in your ability to take on new roles and responsibilities.
BE LOYAL TO YOUR BOSS
Be a respectful and loyal employee, and keep those conversations between the two of you.” A lack of trust can severely damage the relationship and your career”.
TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR MISTAKES
If things didn’t go as well as it could have, bring it up before your boss has to.
DON’T TAKE THINGS PERSONALLY
There are going to be times when you have a different point of view than your manager. In these cases, you should advocate for what you believe, and if you think your boss is making a mistake, part of your job is to explain why. But if your boss ultimately picks a different route or sticks to her different opinion, it’s helpful to have reasonably thick skin. Don’t take things personally, and keep your ego out of it
DISPLAY A POSITIVE ATTITUDE
It’s expected that some days at work can be challenging or stressful when meeting deadlines or working on a budget. However positive attitude is a ‘must-have’ when it comes to building a successful team and it is important to stay optimistic and encouraging in even the most difficult circumstances.
