Effective Management Criteria

Effective Management Criteria

Effective managers lead to business success

1. Know what is going on.

Be aware of what is happening in your sector, your organisation andyour team. Knowledge gives you the tools to plan ahead, use your resources effectively andmake informed decisions.

2. Create a sense of direction.

Establish clear goals and objectives for your employees – andexplain how these fit into an overall plan. Be ready to alter goals as circumstances change, butalways explain why. Make sure tasks, projects and meetings have a purpose and an outcome: ashared sense of direction is the core of a tightly knit, focused team.

3. Make decisions.

Your staff look to you for leadership, and that means making decisions.Indecisiveness will wear away at your credibility and create uncertainty in your team. By allmeans consult with your staff before making a decision, but take responsibility for making ityourself.

4. Lead by example.

Whether you like it or not, you set the tone for your team and they willfollow your example. If you are slack, they will be slack; if you are sharp, they will be, too. It isup to you to set the standards you want your team to aspire to, and communicate those standardsin what you do, what you say and how you say it.

5. Consult and delegate.

You cannot do everything by yourself, so don‘t even try. Talk to your staff about the business, listen to what they say and take their ideas on board. Pass work on to people who can do it and trust them to get the job done.

6. Take responsibility for your team.

Ultimately, you are responsible for your team‘s performance. If they perform poorly, that‘s a reflection on you. So be accountable for their performance and don‘t pass the buck – blame only creates resentment and division. Acceptingresponsibility will earn your employees‘ loyalty and respect.

7. Ask your staff what they want to achieve.

Successful organisations harness the interests andambitions of their staff, who will work with greater enthusiasm and commitment when they havea personal stake in a business or project. Find out what they want to achieve and give them themeans to achieve it.

8. Praise your staff for work well done.

Never pass up an opportunity to commend your staff for working well and always acknowledge their contribution to successful projects. A pat on the back costs nothing, but instils a sense of pride and increases motivation. You might evenconsider developing some sort of incentive or reward scheme.

9. Be completely fair.

Favouritism, however subtle, creates jealousy and damages morale. It‘svital that you don‘t show preference for one person over another, and you give your attentionequally to your staff. This doesn‘t mean you treat them all in exactly the same way, however:good managers realise that people respond to different incentives.

10. Deal with errors calmly.

If you lose your temper, you lose credibility. Deal with mistakescalmly and without rancour. If you have cause to criticise someone, never do so publicly – it isdamaging to individual pride and collective morale.

There are also following facts that should be kept in mind for effectivemanagement:

1. Low competence, high commitment

This bucket tends to contain inexperienced or new teammembers. They often lack the training and experience to be highly competent, but they make upfor it in enthusiasm and commitment to the job at hand.

2. Low to moderate competence, low commitment

This bucket contains poor performers aswell as good performers who are temporarily frustrated. Frustration is usually caused bysomeone who wants to do a good job but doesn‘t yet have the expertise to perform to their expectations.