The views of this article are the perspective of the author and may not be reflective of Confessions of the Professions.
When it comes to a successful business, leadership is critical. A manager is essential for not just driving a team and motivating them, but also handling any conflicts, and developing a game plan to overcome obstacles. If you’re currently stepping into a management role, or you aspire to be a manager in the future, here are some important qualities that you’ll need to be a great manager.
Compassion
One of the most important qualities that a manager should possess is compassion. Keeping your employees safe and well looked after is essential if you hope to be a strong leader. Look out for your employees best interest, and listen to their concerns. By putting yourself in their shoes you practice the art of compassion and lead by example.
Strong Communication
Communication is critical. Practice clarity and transparency when articulating what you expect of your employees. Muddled information or any ambiguous instructions will only lead to confusion and ultimately hold back your team’s productivity. Create an environment that encourages everyone to communicate their needs and feedback, and you’ll find that your team is much stronger as a result.
A strong manager is one that has a strong vision or what they hope their team can achieve. Not only do they envision what their team can do, but they also convey it in a way that inspires their team to do great work. They know how to motivate and inspire when needed, and ultimately know how to make decisions that work towards the ultimate goal. Through their vision they instill confidence and clear direction in their teams goals, ultimately boosting morale.
Organization
There’s no room for disorganization when it comes to leading a team. Efficiency comes down to managing your time and task load effectively, so that you know how to prioritize tasks as they come. This also requires delegating tasks to the right team members. Knowing your team members’ strengths and weaknesses will help you strategically organize what should get done when and by who.
Perhaps most importantly is ensuring that everyone is on the same page when it comes to your projects. Organization is key to ensure that everyone is up to date with instabilities and deadlines. Using tools like cloud software, or shared calendars is a great way to ensure everything stays organized across the board.
Adaptation and Flexibility
In the business world, anything can change from one day to the next. This is why great managers require adaptive and flexible mentalities. They need to be open to new ways of doing things if they hope to overcome challenges and prevent the problems from escalating any further.
They should also encourage their team to be creative and flexible when coming up with ideas to continue to improve collectively as a team.
