Take Charge with Effective Management

“The people I manage are just like me in their thinking, expectations, goals and priorities.”

“Being the expert is the most important factor for my credibility.”

“Success as an individual contributor will translate into management success.”

These are a few fatal assumptions managers make when reflecting on their success. Managing a team is much deeper than this shallow, self-centered way of thinking.

BusinessDictionary.com describes management as the organization and coordination of the activities of a business in order to achieve defined objectives. Good management requires both effectiveness to achieve organizational goals and efficiency to make proper use of money, time, materials and people. Managing with meaning requires planning, organizing and leading your team, facility and destiny. Now is the time to take charge to make management more effective.

Begin With Good Planning

Success can hardly be acquired without purposing your path. Once a goal is defined, planning lays out the path towards obtaining it. Planning can be one of the most time-consuming functions of management. Oftentimes, managers schedule specific days and times just to perform this function.

When planning, approach the scenario from all angles. Try to take into account every possible aspect, keeping in mind that ultimately, your plan will become your staff’s action items.

Tip: Revisit your original business plan. It was written as a map to direct you along your business journey. If you are off path, then plan ways to get back on target and head in a more productive direction.

Organize

There is a common misconception that the people you manage share your expectations, goals and priorities. In reality, this is not true — not because your employees don’t want to work towards the company’s growth, but because more times than not, they have not been informed on how they can help. This is where organization comes in. After developing a plan, it is time to organize.

Create an accountability system to accompany your daily, weekly and monthly task delegations. Implement a structure that empowers leadership, integrity and results, without the need for a micro-managing task-driver.

Tip: When developing a team, choose individuals who understand the vision, and are responsible in accomplishing whatever duties they are assigned.

Take Charge and Lead

This seems to be the part managers like the most — telling people what to do. This is the time when the manager hits the “go” button. Everyone is in place. They know what to do and they know when to do it. But is this truly leadership?

Leading requires interaction with people on a regular basis. A good leader must help to guide and encourage the team to be their very best. To be an efficient manager, you have to carefully walk the fine line between giving detailed instructions and allowing each staff member the chance to decide for themselves the best way to accomplish their assigned tasks.

Tip: Leadership is an important dynamic in any company. To stay up-to-date in the latest leadership practices, attend at least one industry-related leadership seminar a year.

Mentor and Monitor

A manager’s job is to assure that everything is going according to the plan, and be ready to step in with a backup plan when necessary. Problems come up. This is opportunity time — management will either be required to save the day or sink with the ship. Controlling is a very interactive process.

Many entrepreneurs are naturally good at planning, organizing and leading, but keeping it all together and adjusting to change is difficult. Control can be established through routines. There must be a routine for every facet of the project — the personnel, paperwork, execution, etc.

Tip: Keeping control presents an easier platform for learning and will give you a standard for what could potentially need to be changed.

All of these functions are a regular regime for effective management. Planning is figuring out what the goal is and how to do it. Organizing is orchestrating the entire process. Leading is making sure everyone is doing their part. And controlling keeps the implementation phase in progress. Management can be a challenge. However, progress can be accomplished with proper care of each function.

Terrell McTyer is the Marketing Monster of Affiliated Acceptance Corporation. He can be contacted at 573.374.9970, or by e-mail at Terrell.McTyer@Affiliated.org.