On Managing: Why a Title Isn’t Good Enough

As a business owner, I wear a lot of hats. There are days when I’m a salesperson, IT support and janitorial staff all over the course of 9 or 10 hours. However, there’s one role that I have at Solany that is more important than any other because it allows me to be able to take all of the other hats off for a while and just be a business owner. That role is as the manager for my staff.

When managing my team, I know that just saying the words are not enough; I have to foster an environment that gives them some confidence to make their own decisions. If I spent every moment handling all of my team’s needs, I would be babysitting, not managing. So what are some of my keys for developing a management style that will let your team look to you for leadership, but still function autonomously? Below are 5 tips that I find important.

Teach them to prioritize on their own. So much of people’s days can involve switching from project to project and never really getting much of anything done. One of the most important things that people can learn is time management and prioritization. Of course, every company has different priorities, so it’s up to me to teach my team what types of projects I consider most important to least important. Once they understand the way things should be organized, their days run more smoothly and their productivity skyrockets.

Acknowledge success. All too often, managers focus on the negative, and I agree that problems should always be addressed, but you should always acknowledge success. Whether it’s the team as a whole or one employee, pats on the back and rewards for a job well done motivate employees to work harder and achieve more recognition.

Nurture the team dynamic. I hate the term “work groups.” Yes, technically, that’s what my team is; a group of workers. But when you think of your employees and your coworkers in that way, you are all less likely to form the bonds necessary to rely on one another from day to day. Let your employees work as a team and there will be more trust and communication.

Let them learn from their mistakes. As I stated before, we always talk about any problems or mistakes that arise, but if my team isn’t allowed to learn from their mistakes, then they’ll never grow as employees. Let the team handle clean up and only step in if things get really out of control. I know as managers, our instinct is to micromanage in times of crisis, but if we trust our employees to help out in the bad times as well as the good, they become better, more loyal employees.

Offer advice whenever they have questions. I want my employees to feel like they have the freedom to make decisions on their own, but I never want them to feel like they can’t come to me with questions. I try to make myself available as often as possible to offer advice or opinions whenever an employee or the team as a whole has questions.

While these are tips I’ve gleaned over the years, it’s likely you have your own. Feel free to share them here and even if not, I’ll send you a head nod in your direction as we continue as leaders to look for better ways to build teams and keep the ones we build.

Posted by: John Cushman on September 20th, 2011 // View Comments
Posted in: News
Tags: Business Productivity, Business Tips, Communication
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