Top 10 Qualities of an Effective Manager
We all strive to be a truly great Manager: a Manager who earns the respect of many, someone who is inspiring, in short, a pleasure to work for. But it’s not easy, and as many of us know, great managers are few and far between.
So what are the Top 10 Qualities that make a Manager effective?
- Integrity
- Empower
- Motivation
- Delegate
- Adaptable
- Takes action
- Networker
- Understands the Business Culture
- Role Model
- Value people above all else
Integrity fosters trust, which in turn builds loyalty. A manager with loyal staff has the capability to be very effective. They have staff that they know they can rely on and, in turn, their staff are confident in their abilities to deliver knowing they have the support of their manager.
An effective manager empowers his or her staff to perform at their best. This means creating an environment for success: setting boundaries so that people can take responsibility, creating opportunities that allow people to challenge their abilities, motivating people to find new and innovative ways, all while also ensuring support structures are in place.
People perform at their best when they are happy and motivated. But there is much more to motivation than salary or bonuses. A manager that understands his or her employees can set challenging yet achievable goals and rewards in a variety of ways. People can be motivated by interesting work, by being part of an effective team, by the prospect of learning new skills, or by the knowledge that their hard work will be recognised and appreciated.
An effective manager understands the skills and abilities of his or her staff, and knows how to delegate. Effective delegation is selecting the right person to do the work, given the constraints of skill requirements and time. Delegation is entrusting the person with the responsibility to complete the work. It includes setting clear guidelines and expectations as well as boundaries for decision-making responsibilities.
The business environment is an ever-changing one. All managers must be able to quickly adjust, understanding the implications of the changes and adjusting goals and strategies accordingly. An adaptable manager sets an example to his/her employees and leads the way in demonstrating new ways of working and/or behaving.
An effective manager takes action. If they see a problem they address it. This may seem obvious, but all to often there are decisions that many managers find to difficult to take, so they put it off until a later date. Or perhaps they move the problem for someone else to solve, such as the poor performing employee that gets moved around the organisation.
Anyone can obtain the organisation chart, but what is more useful for any manager is to understand the real network within the business. Who are the key people that can make things happen? It’s about understanding who affect the decisions you make today and in the future, and ensuring you have a good relationship with them.
For any manager to be successful in a business they need to understand it’s culture. This means they understand the goals and strategic drivers, they appreciate the future vision for the business, and they know how things happen. Understanding how the ‘wheels turn’ within a business helps a manager work more effectively and equally helps them contribute to the overall strategy and goals.
An effective manager sets an example, to all staff, of appropriate behaviour and performance standards. It may seem obvious, but it is extremely difficult to expect others to behave in a particular way, if you yourself do not set such an example.
A job well done is not about systems or processes or figures; it’s about people. An effective manager recognises the importance of people in business, and shows everyone respect regardless of the role that they play. An effective manager listens to people; is fair and understanding. This doesn’t mean they can always keep everyone happy; because as a manager this simply isn’t the case, however if a decision is reached though a fair process people understand how the outcome was reached even if they don’t necessarily agree with result.
There are many qualities which make a Manager effective. These top 10 qualities are good starting points and should provide guidance in improving your management skills.
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