Do you find yourself struggling to find an effective manager? Recognizing winning talent doesn’t have to be so stressful when you know what to look for. Evaluate your candidates based on these four essential management skills.
1. Look For An Effectual Leader
Although being a dependable manager and being a successful leader are not the same thing, they do go hand in hand. Management effectiveness is more about the skills a worker possesses, while successful leadership hinges on the connection the manager has with his or her employees.
So, what constitutes an effective leader? A good leader values his or her team and makes employees see their own worth within the company. Under a successful leader, workers feel that their position is important and that the work they do is essential to the success of the organization.
Bonus resource: How to Develop a Succession Planning Process: A Guide for Managers
When problems arise, a good leader knows his or her team well enough to solve problems and efficiently resolve conflict while maintaining order. By positively interacting with and leading a team, managers increase retention and promote company loyalty.
When it comes to assessing management candidates, look for signs that they are effective leaders. With the proper management training courses, they’ll have the opportunity to hone those leadership skills and influence their team.
2. Seek Out A Successful Job Skills Coach
While your managers may not have any experience in sports, there are numerous characteristics of a coach that are also beneficial in the office. Coaching capacity is a key management skill to look for when considering a management candidate. It entails identifying the difficulties that employees face and coaching them to overcome these workplace obstacles. A successful job skills coach provides support, encouragement and strategy to improve the way his or her team operates.
To be an effective job skills coach, managers must first identify the weaknesses within their teams. Instead of punishing employees for these weaknesses, managers should coach workers and help them develop a plan to improve their work performance.
Managers should also pinpoint employees’ strengths, incorporating those into the improvement plan as well. If, for example, an employee’s skill set is better suited for other responsibilities, an effective job coach recognizes where this worker would be more useful and encourages the transition. Pinpointing strengths and minimizing potential weaknesses increases employees’ loyalty to the company and establishes trust.
3. For Efficiency, Look For A Delegator
One management skill that enables efficient work processes is leadership delegation. Managers that know when to hand over responsibilities to their employees will help keep your operations running smoothly. Leadership delegation optimizes time management for the entire team, making it easier to accomplish goals and meet deadlines.
Like effective job skills coaching, leadership delegation is about identifying the strengths of employees and giving them responsibilities that complement those strengths. Choose a manager that successfully delegates to employees by:
- Identifying tasks that can be shared
- Determining employees’ strengths and assigning tasks that capitalize on those talents
- Imparting clear, helpful guidance to those individuals doing the work
- Providing employees with the autonomy to complete their tasks
- Giving credit where credit is due for a job well done
4. Find A Real Motivator
No one wants an office of workers who simply do the bare minimum and feel no ownership over their work. Managers have the power to keep their employees motivated and impact the work being produced. By building confidence in their direct reports, managers motivate successful work performance.
There are many ways for managers to motivate their teams to succeed. Allocating bonuses for employees with positive work performance is one example, but there are non-monetary approaches as well. Look for a manager who shows interest in supporting each employee’s journey within the company, including potential promotion opportunities. Managers should be able to inspire workers by creating a supportive work environment. Flexibility, open communication and encouragement all contribute to a motivating work culture that enables employees to thrive.
Seek managers who know how to make workers comfortable in their position, loyal to the company and driven to work harder.
Secure the best managers by looking for the most important management skills – and then provide them with the tools they need to succeed. To learn about change management and how to support managers in times of transition, download your complimentary copy of Change Management: 5 Principles To Combat Ineffective Leadership.
