A manager is a person who is in charge of tasks such as strategizing the work to be done by employees. The duties of a manager involve: organizing, directing, controlling and planning on behalf of the group. A manager has a group of staff who usually report to him/her. A good manager has to be accustomed to the duties that he/she assigns to workers. For managers to be effective leaders, they must have followers who emulate their virtuous character traits, have a goal, commitment, and will and skills to achieve the goals (Redden 2000).
A good manager motivates the employees. Employees need to be motivated in order to retain them even on tough days in the company such as when the company is experiencing financial losses, etc. The manager should respect the team values in return for employees to give their best of their abilities in their assigned tasks (Blake & Mouton 1998). It is necessary for the manager to encourage employees to be outspoken and speak of their experiences at work place. In response, the manager should take action based on what the employees tell them (Fiedler 2007).
Good managers should ensure that each employee knows his/her duties. Possessing solid goals empowers the employees and keeps them focused on their work (Blake & Mouton 1998). The manager has the duty to explain the goals of the company extensively, when the deadline is due and what the manager will do with the results. In this way, the employees know beforehand that they also have a responsibility to accomplish the task at a given time (Halsey & Blanchard 1997). Also, a good manager should present goal oriented feedback that relates to their work to help them improve on their abilities.
The job of a manager entails planning and advising employees on the work that they should do. Thus, a good manager understands the need of delegating tasks appropriately. The manager can start accomplishing his duties by giving basic tasks. As the employees improve on their work, the adept managers have the ability to identify an employee’s weakness and strengths (Redden 1999). Gradually, the supervisors can give workers more complex duties that involve more responsibilities. However, it is essential for managers to assign duties that he/she performs accurately in order to correct the employees when they make mistakes. As the workers start to take more responsibility, the manager should give them duties that will expand their skills and enable them to take ownership of their work (Covey 2001). In this way, the manager will be able to discern how many workers he/she can handle, and it will also make them more valuable to the company.
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The best manager is the one who incorporates an open door policy in order to control flow of communication within the employees. Through an open door policy, employees can present any questions or concerns to the boss. Thus, the manager must always be willing to listen. Through maintenance of an open door policy, the managers can be aware of the issues that the employees face and fix them on time. In order to avoid taking the responsibility of other people mistakes, the manager should give clear instructions and strict non-adherence standards. The good managers should trust the employees and offer a fair margin of error. Consequently, the employees will be more effective and will be able to think for themselves. In case the manger makes mistakes, he/she should acknowledge their missteps in order to show employees how to handle their mistakes (McGregor 1990). Good managers should also treat everyone on an equal basis. This is whether they are the employees they are close to, or it is the people with whom they are not close to, but make the largest contribution to the company.
A good manager organizes and directs a management team. An effective management team is necessary for the growth and success of an organization. Therefore, the manager has the responsibility to recruit a group of experts who are highly skilled to help them run the company. The manager has to give the experts authority to be flexible and make decisions based on their capacity. First and foremost, the manager should examine the state of the company to understand the management that is to be put in place based on the gaps in leadership of the company. In case the manager cannot perform certain tasks, he/she can consider an option of asking for help from a professional network before proceeding to recruit the management team. Thereafter, the management team can be developed (Wright 1996).
It is not enough for one to be just a good manager. Leadership necessitates a good manager to act as a leader, since an authentic manager has to acquire the traits of a leader for his/her leadership to be effective. By virtue of a managerial role, a manager has to maintain leadership of his group (Bass 1995). An effective leader has to influence the work and behavior of other people in group efforts in order to acquire particular objectives in a given circumstance (Senge 1990). Managers at all levels should be leaders of work groups so that the workers can take instructions and act upon them. This is possible if the manager succeeds a number of character traits. The subsequent section of the essay will discuss the qualities that any good manager should have in order to be an effective leader.
Good managers can become effective leaders if they have set particular goals. An effective leader turns visions into reality through and with the corporation of subordinates. The goal should be achievable and beyond someone’s capabilities to keep an individual challenged. The managers ought to employ a clear grasp of an overriding vision and be able to improve that using successful execution technique (Nanas 1992).
Mangers can be effective leaders if they practice integrity and consistency as found in leaders. He/she must be consistent when it comes to operating in discernible principles as those in leadership traits (Bennie 1998). In likeness to this, a manager must set good examples of fairness and credibility in order for the team members to follow suit (Fiedler & Gracia 2007). An effective leader possesses a strong code of ethics to base their lifestyle and decisions. A leader’s behavior dictates their set of values (Heifetz 1994). Thus, a manager should not expect the followers to do what is right if they see the manager doing what is wrong. This means that, for any manager to be effective, they must be willing to sacrifice their time to give direction with regards to the team whenever necessary. The best manager is the one who acts as a servant in order for the whole team to excel and acquire high ethical standards.
Every manager who aims to be an effective leader has to understand his/her personal strength and the strength of the team members (Stogdill 1998). Leaders understand that they do not have to compel themselves to attain every leadership skill. Instead, they surround themselves with individuals who can fill in the gaps for them. Accordingly, they get duties done through the assistance of other people. They do this by first, getting the best people to perform the tasks. Second, they delegate the duties. Third, they supervise and constantly check the progress of the work done (Hersey 2004). This means that it is essential that managers have a purpose statement and meet with the team members regularly. Additionally, for them to be effective leaders they ought to set short and long term goals, which can be reviewed twice or thrice per year. This strategy enables the team members to be self-motivated.
Team members only raise the standard of persistence, which they observe in the manager. This means that a manager has to set an example of persistence that ought to be emulated. There are many instances when ones followers will drop away due to pressure of the situation (Mann 2009). This is a time when every manager has to remember that when the going gets tough, the effective manager gets going. The key to being an effective leader is to endure even when faced with tough times and situations. It is normal to be tempted to quit by friends, colleagues and even from those enemies that someone does not perceive to be enemies. Persistence, determination, and perseverance are the key ingredients for a manager to be successful in what they do. Effective leaders do not grow into a comfort zone after a handful of successful encounters. They are exceptional people who have learnt to learn from their mistakes, risen and tried again.
Open communication and open professional relationships are elements that any manager who aspires to be an effective leader should induce in the organization. A manager who seeks to be an effective leader ought to speak out. He/she should also keep confidential information private, listen more than they speak in conversations with the employees and handle dreadful news effectively when they receive it. Many employees whether in large or small organization complain that there is a lack of communication between them and the boss (Gardener 2009). Communication with regards to management is essential when it comes to interpersonal communication between a manager and employees and in the general flow of information within the organization. Relationships form from good interpersonal and group communication skills. Managers who deal with the issues that people face have an added advantage when it comes to initiating and deepening relationships. Through such professional work relationships, the manager builds a team and attains impressive results from the employees.
Teamwork and adaptability are vital aspects for any manager to be a successful leader. A good manager must understand the value of working cooperatively as a group and working as an individual. The manager should promote teamwork among the people that he/she leads and learn to work collaboratively with the employees. Leaders develop and encourage others to expend their capabilities and to undertake extra tasks (Rosener 1997). They know how to build the foundation for the team members to follow and how to nurture their talents and skills. To add on to that, effective leaders learn to relinquish rigidity, control and embrace change. Thus, the manager ought to accept change and take it as an opportunity to improve his/her leadership.
A good leader cares about the welfare of the employees. This means that he/she is collegial and builds a sense of group identity. Effective leaders bring out the best of each person and delight in the achievement of each group member. Therefore, managers ought to rejoice in the achievement of the followers without any degree of jealousy. The manager should celebrate the success and achievement of his/her followers no matter how small. Celebration of the achievement of employees whose main focus is to honor and recognize performance helps to create and maintain unity cohesion. Celebrations exhibit a manager’s commitment to team members since they are expressions of appreciation of the work done. Celebrating employees’ success is paramount. Moreover, celebration is a symbol of recognition for a task well-performed in alignment to the group’s mission, value and goals. The rewarding of an employee’s success does not have to be costly or consume a lot of time. Good management entails an understanding that celebrations are not a waste of time or resources but a powerful tool essential to encourage motivation, high performance and sustainability (Burns 1998).
In conclusion, for any individual who aspires to be a proficient manager, it is essential to integrate traits of an effective leader. The person taking a managerial role ought to set a good example that can be imitated by those working for them. In the process, they should also inspire the people in order to guarantee that the results of goals of the organization are in consistent with the management and leadership efforts.
