Empowering Your Managers: How To Allow Them To Thrive As Leaders
Bad managers can ruin a business which has been proven time after time. Empowering managers to do a great job will require training and making the right decisions when promoting employees. Allowing a manager to truly flourish in their role as a manager requires an approach that allows the manager to manage within reason. The following are tips to empower managers and help them thrive as leaders at your company.
Performance Over Leadership Style
The truth is that a manager understands what motivates their team. This could be a relaxed attitude where if deadlines are hit, employees are all but left alone. Micromanaging a manager that already has their team clicking on all levels needs to be avoided. There are some people that have management styles that make employees want to work hard. A great manager will hold each member of a team accountable regardless of the production levels. Special treatment can cause rifts within a team which needs to be avoided at all costs.
Leadership Classes/Coaching
Leadership coaching can be so important for those that might be struggling with management. Requiring this training can be so important for those that have not managed before. Others that have managed might need a refresher course on how to manage people. Motivating remote employees is a great example of something new to most managers in the last few years that is invaluable. Invest in your managers as it will be appreciated especially if they get a few days off to improve their management skills.
Be Realistic About Team Goals
Pushy managers too hard can impact their leadership styles negatively. Realistic goals can still push productivity to the next level. The morale of a team can drop immensely when the team realizes they will be reprimanded for not meeting a goal that was impossible. Work-life balance being stressed by managers might look hypocritical if the only way goals can be achieved is by working 16-hour days. Incremental improvements need to be noted along with appreciation as this leads to increased revenue.
Give Managers Input On New Hires
A manager is going to have a better idea of how an individual will fit in with their team. This could be personality traits or simple previous experience. Manager referrals can be very important as most managers would not recommend a former colleague if they were not confident in their work. Nobody wants to impact their team negatively with a hire that will reflect poorly on themselves. The fact that a manager’s reputation is on the line is usually enough to deter those that just want to work with friends.
With this being said, if a manager has picked multiple terrible fits for the company, their input should be weighed far less. Hiring managers can be so important as they will take input along with references and previous experience when picking an applicant.
Empower your managers in the ways above as it can make all of the difference. Employee retention is vital to the success of a business and great managers drive employee retention.
