Learning how to be a good manager is something that all people in a managerial role should research and implement. After all, a manager can make or break a team. Even if you have been a manager for some time, doing soft skill courses will help you refresh your manager techniques. If you have just been promoted to a manager role, we have some tips for you to help you and your team be successful, professionally and personally. We all have horror stories of bad managers; you don’t want to be added to that fabled list! Fortunately, how to be a good manager isn’t super hard to do. All it takes is some patience, some learning, and improving yourself by allowing regular feedback from your team.

 

What Makes A Great Manager?

 

• A great manager will allow their team to perform to their best abilities, by making sure equipment and support is available. As a manager, you need to make sure your team is well supported, ideas and tasks are appropriately communicated and if there is any equipment needed, that it is provided. A good manager will make sure there is enough time set aside to help train and support their team. 
• A great manager will be organised. You will need to re-organise old policies, improve on existing ones and start new procedures that are cost-effective in time and money. 
• A great manager knows how to communicate. The lack of communication is one of the most prominent complaints workers have. A good manager will be able to communicate effectively with their team and with other departments. This can be implemented by having regular team checkups; to discuss ideas and projects, and having regular one-to-one meetings; where your team can provide honest feedback about projects, the working environment and of course, you.
• A great manager knows how to motivate. Getting to know your team on a professional and personal level will help you learn how to encourage them. You can set tasks and projects that are suited to an individual's skill set. Your job as a manager is to capitalise on their skills, set clear expectations and give feedback once the task is complete. 
• A great manager does not micro-manage. A good manager will trust their team to do a good job. By setting tasks, projects and goals, and allowing your team to do it; without continually breathing down their necks or questioning everything they do; will enable your team to grow, learn and become self-sufficient. There is nothing more debilitating than being trusted to do a job and having your manager not trusting you do it. 

 

Good Management Skills

 

Good management skills are subjective, but ultimately, they all have the same common goal; success and productivity. If you are new to a management role, here are a few skills you can work on to become a good manager.

• Lead by example. If you start slacking off or fail to follow company policies, then your team will begin to follow your lead. They will most likely think, "Well, my manager isn't doing that, then why should I?" 
• Delegate. You now have a team of people beneath you; you should start to delegate tasks. However, don't pawn off tasks that are unsavoury to you. It would help if you learned what makes an individual tick and what their strengths are; then set tasks accordingly. If a team member asks to help you, let them!
• Become a master of time. Now that you're a manager, you now need to organise yourself, with team meetings, one-to-ones, and of course, getting the work done. Always use an agenda - and don't have your settings set on private. Your calendar wants to be an open book, so your team knows what you are doing, and when it's best to approach you when they need help. 
• Be realistic. Another good management skill is setting realistic and achievable tasks, for yourself and your team. Setting the bar too high is a sure way to have a failure. Don't be a manager where you set a task and have the deadline the next day; not only is that solely unrealistic, it is unfair and will cause unnecessary stress in the workplace. 
• Improve your skills. You may be new to a managerial role, or you have some experience. However, it isn’t a bad idea to have some soft-skills training; you should also consider some HR training. It would help if you strived to keep learning, so in turn, you can teach your team; whether that be keeping on top of trends, new technologies and new ways to work.

 

Key Strengths Of A Good Manager

 

Ultimately, the key strengths of a good manager are; 

• Mutual trust. As a manager, you need to be trustworthy, and you need to trust your team. In a productive team, mistakes will happen, but instead of telling your team off, see the error as a learning opportunity. Being honest and open with your team is also a plus point and providing regular direct feedback is a productive way to build trust. 
• A good manager does not micro-manage. We know we have said this before, but this is a super important thing. A good manager does not micro-manage! Micromanaging will erode worker creativity and motivation. Being a manager doesn’t mean you have to have control over every little detail, trust your team to do a good job. 
• Help to develop employee’s careers. You want your team to strive and stay with you and the company. A good manager supports their team, allowing individuals to do training and to master new skills. 
• A good manager is open to new ideas. You want your team to grow and be successful; one of the best ways to do this is to listen and allow your team to have new ideas and to be creative. If a team member has a different method to the way, you do things, but you both get the same results, encourage their creative thinking. 
• A good manager recognises and rewards good work. If your team or an individual is performing well, tell them and reward them! It is so demoralising when you work hard and provide excellent results for your manager not even to acknowledge it. You will lose your talented team or talented individual to another company. 

 

How To Find Workers Online

 

Now you know how to be a good manager; now you need to find talented workers! Luckily, we on StudentJob have over 1 million young, skilled workers for you and your company. Generation Z is the new workforce, and you will need to start future-proofing your company by attracting the new generation. Place your free job advert with us today to get started. 

All the job adverts you post online with us are automatically placed on Google For Jobs! We also show you how to SEO proof your job adverts, too. Being an employer on StudentJob is a win-win situation, as we do all the hard work for you. If you have any queries about us or your job adverts, feel free to contact us.

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