Basics of being a good Manager and Leader

Reading time: 7 minutes

This is what you get when the kid described as a “natural leader” by teachers grows up and goes into management. As someone who started out their 'management' journey at the right old age of 10 when he was chosen as the captain of his football team, which then paved the way to management, founding and running his own company; I may not be a seasoned veteran who's written 20 best selling books on the subject but Ive definitely done my fair share when it comes learning about how to be a better leader for the people on your team.

It is often said that people don’t quit their jobs, they quit their managers; so how do make sure your employees don’t hate your guts and leave you behind. Job satisfaction is vital to employee retention and performance. It was previously thought that if you gave someone enough money they would be happy to do anything but in today's structured and corporatised world that is no longer the case. People don't want to slog through their workday counting every passing minute, work should be somewhat enjoyable right? While I don't buy into the whole “we’re a family” nonsense, work will always be work regardless of how enjoyable it is, you are still a team where you are both the coach and the captain. So the question is; how can you get the best out of your team while making their work lives better (because you're not going to be a manager for long if you don't deliver results along with satisfaction). There's a few things every manager should consider to answer that question:

Expectations

It's important to set clear expectations for everyone, including yourself. Expectations for the work, the difficulty, the timeframe, and the outcome upon completion (which I’ll expand on later). Clearly communicating task details is crucial to ensure the team is aligned on the right goals and has the necessary resources and knowledge to effectively complete the task. While setting these expectations, however, it is also of the upmost importance to hold yourself to the same set of standards and expectations as your team. You should make anyone work in a way you are not willing to do yourself; lead by example and by reasonable in your requests. This ties into my next point.

Open and clear communication

It's important to foster an environment where people can speak up about complications and issues with their job in a supportive, judgment free environment. “There's no shame in asking for help” (unless you ask for the same thing for the 1000th time, then there's a little shame because you do have to figure it out eventually) should be the energy around the team. Imagine struggling with an aspect of a task or just not understanding exactly what you're supposed to be doing and not even being able to ask someone for clarification due to fear of judgement or repercussion. This is the type of stuff that leads to people quitting.

Make sure your team members are comfortable reaching out to you, which will eventually lead to them being more open to helping each other. Once you know your team better, you'll know that not everyone will reach out. Some just believe their problems should be their own to solve (guilty), but that defeats the purpose of being in a team. You have to recognise those individuals and sometimes offer a helping hand; regardless of whether they need it or not the offer will always be appreciated. People will take ownership of their tasks, their successes, and more importantly their failures because they know that they now have people to help avoid that failure in the future.

Management Style

Everyone has their own management style that develops over time in leadership roles, and its effectiveness is highly dependent on the type of people you have in your team, your own personality, and the culture of not only the company but the country you are in. As a result of all this is difficult to say whether one particular management style is more effective than others. However, I believe it is possible to take elements of different management styles and “min/max” certain aspects of them to find what best suits your team.

An interesting study titled “Half serious 70% of the time: the role of humour in leadership” by Shaquille O’Neal (yes, Shaq Diesel, Superman, the breaker of backboards) found that humour can have a very welcome place in leadership and management, especially when trying to create a more positive and motivating working environment. Now this may seem like it's very obvious to some, but at times in very structured environments it's difficult to loosen up enough to crack a joke, particularly when people look to you for direction.

It is important to find a balance, joke too much and you run the risk of losing respect and not being taken seriously (think Michael Scott). On the other hand, be too rigid and you run the risk of making the work environment less hospitable and too robotic. Like the title of Shaq’s dissertation suggests, find a balance that you can use for the majority of time, and use either extreme when the situation calls for it; such as conflict mediation, releasing tension, or motivating employees.

Recognition and Reward

You know what that means… Pizza party!!! no. Well maybe sometimes but that's not the point. The point is the recognition and reward is often treated as the one and the same. People think that simply because you were given credit for something it will be enough, but it's only when they're treated like 2 distinct and important features does job satisfaction increase significantly. While it can be argued that the recognition will eventually lead to positive career development, what do we do in the meantime? People have overpriced bills to pay!

So what can managers do, well recognition is easy; give praise for their hard work, provide support where appropriate, and credit people for their contributions. As far as rewards are concerned there are 2 camps; intrinsic and extrinsic rewards. Intrinsic rewards include a lot of what has already been discussed in this article (the things that improve the day to day work environment and give employees purpose), whereas extrinsic rewards are external akin to pay bonuses, extra vacation days, work perks, and in some rare instances… a pizza party.

Ultimately, if you’re struggling for ideas as to how to reward your team members, the best source of information are the employees themselves; you can always just ask them. If you have successfully fostered an environment for clear and honest communication, this shouldn't be very difficult to do.

In conclusion, effective management is a delicate balancing act that requires clear expectations, open communication, a flexible management style, and a dual approach to recognition and reward. Managers should lead by example, creating a supportive environment where team members feel comfortable raising issues and seeking help. They should adapt their leadership style to their team, and remember that recognition and reward are two separate but equally important aspects of job satisfaction. The key is to find the right balance that suits your team, and be willing to adjust as necessary. So, consider implementing these principles into your own leadership style, and remember: the only constant is change. Whether it's a shift in corporate culture or a new face on the team, a good manager is always ready to adapt and grow.

Bibliography

Baird, J.E. and Bradley, P.H. (1979) ‘Styles of Management and Communication: A Comparative Study of men and women’, Communication Monographs, 46(2), pp. 101–111. doi:10.1080/03637757909375995.

Hansen, F., Smith, M. and Hansen, R.B. (2002) ‘Rewards and recognition in employee motivation’, Compensation & Benefits Review, 34(5), pp. 64–72. doi:10.1177/0886368702034005010.

Hargie, O., Dickson, D. and Tourish, D. (2004) Communication skills for effective management. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.

McCarthy, S.L. (2013) Leadership through humor, the comedy theories of dr. Shaquille O’Neal, ph.D.., The Comic’s Comic. Available at: https://thecomicscomic.com/2013/03/05/leadership-through-humor-a-comedy-theory-by-dr-shaquille-oneal-ph-d/