Management is never easy. It can be a stressful position to undertake as it deals with many personalities that do not always mesh well together. There are many stories on the Internet regarding poor management, and this article only scratches the surface, which brings me to a story I heard about earlier this year…
There was a manager in a large firm who fell down at the workplace. She fell and everyone heard her fall, yet no one, not one single person she managed, got up to see if she was ok. Worse? A few snickered out a laugh. Although she ended up with a broken ankle, she also had a rather large wake-up call in her management position. As far as her group was concerned, she did not care about them at all, so when she fell, they treated her the same way as she treated them.
This is why hiring only the best employees for a company is important-and this includes management…but sometimes that’s in retrospect. There are times when it’s too late and a company has what it has-at least until it wises up and begins to educated all employees. So what does good management consist of and what should you avoid if you want to be a manager? Consider these 8 points for starters:
Listen
Do not yell, intimidate or embarrass. A good manager does not scold or raise her voice in front of an employee who did something incorrectly. In lieu of yelling, a good manager would take that employee aside and help explain the mistake to the employee, saving face for both of them. Bad managers lose control in front of subordinates. Losing control often includes cursing, yelling, and demeaning someone, which is ugly for everyone involved and can result in a harassment lawsuit.
Stick to the rules
A good manager abides by the rules of the company. This means she obeys policies regarding sick time, required work hours, following the dress code, abiding by lunch break rules, and not using foul language. This means not taking 20 minute smoke breaks or 3 hour lunch breaks.
Be nice, tactful, but firm
Good managers do not look, act, or feel abusive to their employees. They have tact and consistency-with everyone. This means no finger pointing (literally or figuratively), no rolling of the eyes, or huffs and puffs. Believe me when I say that this actually happens, even in law firms!
Receive input
They seek input from their employees on how the workplace could improve by having a suggestion box or another anonymous method of suggestion.
Be a leader
They protect their team from gossip and defend them if necessary.
Educate
Good managers train their team to perform well, as their performance reflects directly back upon them. Educating employees of all levels is extremely important for the company’s success but also for employee morale.
Be fair
Good managers do not take sides. They listen, make considerations, and then decide on the outcome– in private.
Be trustworthy
A good manager does not have personal discussions regarding one employee to another employee and will totally avoid highly personal conversations with all employees, keeping it on a professional, respectable level.
There are insecure managers that try to dominate or bully employees by threatening job security to keep an employee scared enough to do a particular task. Once an employee becomes disgruntled he becomes unmotivated, his performance will decline and will soon quit the job or expect to be fired, which is a whole new ballgame of expenses, legalities, and paperwork.
Ask yourself why your employees are unmotivated, and then take a good hard look at management and at yourself. You might discover the failure comes from a higher level than previously thought. By hiring top-notch employees, keeping staff educated and trained, a company may rest assured that their management team has their workforce all under control because they, too, are in control of themselves.