Tooling Up To Be a Better Manager

The life of a manager is no doubt tough – there are staff to manage and direct, goals to be set and achieved, and difficult decisions to be made. How a manager interacts with their staff can have huge consequences for the organisation’s culture, performance and success.

Managers need some specific tools of the trade to be able to effectively manage their team, and ensure they are getting the best out of people. A team with poorly-managed employees can have poor motivation, a negative culture, and develop unacceptable habits and behaviours that are only addressed at a once-yearly performance management meeting.

So what tools and resources can managers draw upon to help them be the best, and get the best out of their team? Here are some useful tools for becoming a better manager. 

Be the best communicator you can be 

An effective manager is one who takes the time to communicate with the team. This can be as simple as a daily greeting, scheduling regular meetings or having your office in close proximity to your employees so you are not relying on email to communicate.

A manager who is unavailable to their staff for frequent and long periods of time can lead to inadequately supported and unhappy staff, resentment, a poor culture, and may even result in increased absenteeism because staff have no direction in their role.

Effective communication is a powerful tool for managers – conflicting messages, micro-management and inadequate instructions can result in reduced productivity and diminished employee efficiency.

Don’t forget that body language and non-verbal communication skills are a strong method of conducting messages about how you may view an employee. Limited eye contact, a defensive stance and silence can make an employee feel intimidation, and in turn, they may reciprocate by counter-productivity. Instead, practice open body language, good eye contact and positivity.

Discover what drives employee motivation

High performance teams are highly engaged  – they possess personal and professional goals that drive their elevated performance. A good manager will take the time to find out what makes staff tick, where their passions lie and what direction they want to take in the company.

An effective manager can recognise good and bad traits in employees, and why they do the things they do. Motivation creates altered behaviours in order to achieve a set goal, so all employees will have reasons for their conduct.

For example, an employee may be organised and manage their time well, but may find it difficult to delegate tasks or ask others for help while under pressure, for fear of being seen as a ‘weak’ link in the team. A manager may encourage other members of the team to offer help and assistance if their workload is low.

You can identify traits in a number of ways, including by looking at their self-motivation, attitude and how they interact with their peers, other managers and key company stakeholders.

Be a mentor

All teams need a role model to lead by example, even high performance teams. Managers can make ideal mentors due to their heightened skills and experience. They can provide staff with better communication skills, more innovative ways of solving complex problems, and can help them set personal and professional goals that are conducive to the strategic plan.

Managers that take on the mentor arrangement are able to influence and shape staff thinking patterns, because they build a level of trust with their employees. They can also identify areas for team development and individual growth.

A mentor will need to be available to staff whenever possible, and set boundaries about what is and what is not acceptable to discuss at work.

Don’t neglect performance management

An employee should not be surprised by what they learn during a performance management meeting. It’s also important to note that this doesn’t refer to the “tick the box” performance management approach, which can tend to be robotic and ineffective.

Instead, it means an effective manager who thoroughly and frequently communicates with staff to pick up and eliminate bad habits or identify potential areas for improvement. Feedback should be provided when positive events occur. Feedback should also take the form of constructive criticism.

Carefully consider job fit and the link to performance

Despite the presence of regular communication, some employees simply don’t fit their roles and are therefore perceived as poor performers. The signs of a poor performer include lack of engagement, regularly missing deadlines and poor productivity. Studies show that a top performer is twice as productive as a poor performer, so this highlights the importance of adding some science and robust process to the selection process. This can help to eliminate challenges down the track, by ensuring you select people who can be great in the role, not just people you ‘like’.

It is also important for a manager to understand what is contributing to the  poor performance, and to determine the reasoning behind it. In the 21st century with a generally well-educated and trained workforce, it may be an issue with fit. Redeployment may be an option, but either way, dealing with issues in a professional and appropriate manner benefits not just the team but also the poor performer, who may be better suited to a role in a different organisation where they are a better fit.

Get involved with the interview process

A manager should be  involved in the recruitment process, even if the process is outsourced. It takes time and energy to build a high-quality team culture and you need to know whether or not a potential candidate is going to work with or against the flow. Behavioural interview questions, for example, can help predict future employee behaviour and give you an insight into potential job fit. Thorough interviewing can also help reduce employee turnover and avoid having to repeat a lengthy, time-consuming and expensive recruitment process.

Any manager can be effective – it just takes the right tools, skills and attitude. An effective manager is one who can invest time and energy into their team and genuinely thrives on seeing the team succeed. Being the best manager you can be can result in a positive team, a great workplace culture and long-lasting working relationships.