Why Managing People is not as bad as you Think

Managing people is a challenge, but it is essential. Each individual has their unique personalities, strengths, weaknesses and feelings. Helping each person achieve his or her potential requires different motivations and strategies. It is also a dynamic process that is evolving to accommodate changes in the diverse and complex workplace. Managing your people properly makes a difference and a well-managed team will always outperform others less well directed. Managing people is not as bad as you think.

Helping employees become more competent is an important part of a manager’s job. By helping others resolve personal problems and develop skill competencies, this helps to improve their job performance and ultimately motivate them to achieve better results for themselves and the company. Coaching is focused on improving an individual’s performance against a task, providing feedback on their strengths and weaknesses in order to help them improve their performance. The effectiveness of coaching depends on your skills as a coach and the receptivity of the individual being coached. Coaching should be conducted one-to-one and in private if possible. It should start from where the person actually is in performance terms, not where they ought to be. Coaching can be a win-win situation for both the coach and the person being coached. To have the capacity to coach not only benefits the coachee, but the coach gains from career progression. Research has shown that the ability to coach others is a criteria that is heavily weighted in the selection of managers at the senior level of an organization.

On the other hand, mentoring is focused on a longer-term, deep relationship that is aimed at helping an individual learn about appropriate behaviour in an organization, navigating the political climate and “how things work around here”. Organisations differ in how they offer this service. Some organisations adopt a centralized approach where the human resources department will allocate mentors to selected individuals. In other organisations, there is no official system in place and employees seek out mentors on their own. This may not be their immediate manager, but usually someone at a senior level. As a mentor, try to help others reduce the stress of uncertainty about how to do things and deal with challenging tasks. Be a source of comfort when newer, less experienced employees approach you with their aspirations and concerns in their career development.

The bullies. The whiners. The procrastinators. We have all encountered a difficult colleague in one way or another. While you can’t control how others act, you can control how you respond to their behavior. Dealing effectively with difficult people at work is part science and part art. It takes a delicate blend of emotional savvy, careful planning and interpersonal skills. In addition, if you are a manager, you need to know how to address problematic behavior before the situation leads to absenteeism, high turnover, low morale and productivity. Sometimes, you might need to seek help from outside, such as engaging anger-management specialists or psychiatrists who can help your employees tackle deep-rooted issues. Whichever approach you take, ensure that the emphasis is on solving problems and not blaming individuals. There should be tolerance for conflict as conflict is an inevitable part of human interaction. More importantly, ensure that conflict is openly discussed, resulting in growth and learning opportunities for the employees involved.

Whether you are a seasoned manager or new to the role, coordinating the work of multiple employees in various places will stretch your skills. How do you get your team to trust one another when they have never met them in person? How do you get past technological glitches to have productive conversations? These are just some of the challenges you face when you manage a virtual team. Working remotely is increasingly common as Millennials, who form the majority of the workforce seeks a work life balance. Statistics show that the number of telecommuting workers has increased 115% in a decade. Getting the right people on the team, picking the right technology, finding the right channels for communication and ensuring accountability in work are some ways that managers can lead virtual teams effectively. With the right tools and tactics, managing virtual teams is not so difficult.

All in all, it boils down to a simple definition of management: The achievement of results through other people. Because you cannot do everything by yourself, it follows that you will stand or fall by the success of those you employ. When you help others be successful, you will not only enhance your effectiveness as a manager, but become a leader that others will follow.