1.2 THE SKILLS YOU NEED TO BE A GREAT BOSS: The Core Skills Needed

(EXTRACTION FROM TEAM MANAGEMENT: Management Skills at http://www.mindtools.com)

According to Warren G Bennis' saying that "Leaders are people who do the right things; managers are people who do things right."  Leadership involves creating a compelling vision of the future, communicating that vision, and helping people understand and commit to it.  Whilst managers are responsible for ensuring that the vision is implemented efficiently and successfully.  These two roles can overlap.

The Core Skills
The Importance of Delegation	·        No matter how skilled you are, there's only so much that you can achieve working on your own ·        Successful delegation starts with matching people and tasks
Motivating Your Team	·        bear in mind that different people have different needs when it comes to motivation
Developing Your Team	·        Teams are made up of individuals who have different outlooks and abilities, and are at different stages of their careers ·        The most effective way of developing your people is to ensure that you give regular feedback to members
Communicating and Working With Your Team – and With Others	·        Communication skills are essential for success in almost any role Communicating With People in Your Team ·        mastering the skill of running effective meetings ·        facilitates brainstorming sessions ·        master active listening Communicating With People Outside Your Team ·        understand fully what your boss wants ·        Don't be afraid to ask your boss to coach or mentor you ·        look after your team and protect it from unreasonable pressure ·        Learn skills like assertiveness and win-win negotiation ·        manage the way that your team interacts with other groups
Managing Discipline	·        Discipline may not always relate specifically to the employee's work ·        When faced with a potential discipline issue: o   take time to gather information about the situation, o   decide what you're going to do, and o   act. ·        Discipline issues rarely go away of their own accord, and they usually get worse, often causing considerable resentment amongst other team members

 

Take care to avoid the common mistakes that new managers tend to make:

·        Relying on existing job knowledge and technical skills to succeed as a manager.  Take time to develop goo management and people skills.

·        Fail to consult regularly with your boss.

·        Approaching the boss without thinking through the problem and without problem solving suggestion.

·        Embarrassing your boss, or letting the boss get a nasty surprise.

·        Fail to talk to the customers

·        Using your authority inappropriately