Understanding employees: 4 keys to being an excellent executive
When you’ve been promoted to a managerial position, it’s important that you begin thinking about how you’re going to lead the people under you. The performance of your team will be directly tied to your own performance as an executive. If you want to succeed, you need to understand your employees and work with them, rather than against them. Here are four of the top keys to being a great manager and helping your team succeed.
Fully understand each employee’s role
For an employee, there’s nothing worse than a boss who doesn’t understand what each person’s role in a team is. Make sure you have an encyclopedic knowledge of what every person under you is supposed to be doing. If you don’t, your instructions could unintentionally create incoherence and tension within the team you’re leading.
Make yourself accessible
When your employees have a problem or question, they’ll naturally want to come to you for your input. Some managers, however, make the mistake of discouraging this altogether beneficial type of communication by acting as if questions inconvenience them. Whatever you do, never discourage your team members from bringing questions to you. Instead, make it clear that you’re there to help however you can, as this will ensure proper communication between you and your employees.
Develop your emotional intelligence
Emotional intelligence, broadly defined as the consciousness of both the feelings of oneself and others, is a key ingredient in great leadership. People high in emotional intelligence are able to motivate team members to success, while at the same time empathizing with them when things aren’t quite going according to plan. Like normal intelligence, emotional intelligence is something you can actively work on. Make a conscious effort to be more mindful of the feelings of your team, and you can start to develop this key leadership skill.
Incentivize great performance
While you should always expect the best work possible out of your team, rewarding them when they deliver it will help to ensure that you get it. When your team reaches major goals, reward them with verbal praise, a fun activity or a catered office lunch. When individual team members go the extra mile, you should likewise reward them with congratulations and perhaps an extra vacation day. By rewarding great work, you’ll keep your team and its individual members motivated to always do their best.
These are just a few of the ways you can position yourself for success as a manager. Improving your skill set by looking into a Masters in Executive Leadership or something similar is another great way to help your business. By following these four simple concepts, you can make yourself more effective as a leader, thereby making the team under you more successful in its tasks.
