Motivation
7. Community minded? This is someone who draws a fine balance
between career, family, and community obligations. An organisation’s
contribution to the community is called ‘social responsibility’.
8. Pursuing continuous self-improvement? This person seeks
evaluation of work performance by others, and also takes advantage of
any opportunities for self –development by attending training courses
and reading.
9. Possessive of basic integrity? An individual with basic integrity
shows careful use of the organisation’s equipment, makes good use of
meeting time, and gives credit to others when due. These people are
intellectually honest and have the self-confidence to acknowledge when
they don’t have the answers.
10. Emotionally mature? EM is a ‘positive emotional response to
inner and outer stress and strain’. Since we live in one of the most stressful times in history, this is a prime characteristic for a good leader.
11. Are you able to lead through persuasion & influence?
12. Trusting of others to lead projects and teams, even
though you do not have a leadership title?
What is Management?
ART AND SCIENCE
Management is both art and science. It is the art of making people
more effective than they would have been without you. The
science is in how you do that. There are four basic pillars:
plan, organise, direct, and monitor.
MAKE THEM MORE EFFECTIVE
Four workers can make six units in an eighthour shift without a manager. If I hire you to manage them and they still make six units a day, what
is the benefit to my business of having hired you?
On the other hand, if they now make eight units per
day, you, the manager, have value. That is the value
of management - making a group of individuals more
effective.
PLAN
Management starts with planning.
Good management starts with
good planning, and proper prior planning prevents… well, you
know the rest of that one. Without a plan you will never succeed. If you happen to make
it to the goal, it will have been
by luck or chance and is not
repeatable. You may make
it as a flash-in-the-pan, an
overnight sensation, but you
will never have the track record of accomplishments of
which success is made. Figure out
what your goal is then figure out the best
way to get there. Compare strengths and weaknesses of individuals
and other resources.
Look at all the probable scenarios and plan for them. Figure out the
worst possible scenario and plan for that too. Evaluate your different
plans and develop what, in your best judgement, will work the best and
what you will do if it doesn’t.
ORGANISE
Now that you have a plan, you have to make it happen. Are the
workers trained? Are they motivated? Do they have the equipment they
need? Are there spare parts available for the equipment? Has purchasing ordered the material? Is it the right stuff? Will it get here on the appropriate schedule? Do the legwork to make sure everything needed to
execute the plan is ready to go, or will be when it is needed. Check back
to make sure that everyone understands their role and the importance
of their role to the overall success.
DIRECT
Now flip the “ON” switch. Tell people what they need to do. I
like to think of this part like conducting an orchestra. Everyone in
the orchestra has the music in front of them. They know which
section is playing which piece and when. They know when to come
in, what to play, and when to stop again. The conductor cues each
section to make the music happen. That’s your job here. You’ve
given all your musicians (workers) the sheet music (the plan). You
have the right number of musicians (workers) in each section (department), and you’ve arranged the sections on stage so the music
will sound best (you have organised the work). Now you need only
to tap the podium lightly with your baton to get their attention
and give the downbeat.
MONITOR
Now that you have everything moving, you have to keep
an eye on things. Make sure everything is going according to
the plan. When it isn’t going according to plan, you need to
step in and adjust the plan, just as the orchestra conductor
will adjust the tempo. Problems will come up. Someone will
get sick. A part won’t be delivered on time. A key customer
One of the most often overlooked management
TIP planning tools is the most effective. Ask the
people doing the work for their input.
will go bankrupt. That is why you developed a
contingency plan in the first place. You, as the
manager, have to always be aware of what’s
going on so you can make the adjustments
required.
IS IT WORTH IT?
Managing people is not easy, however,
it can be done successfully and it can be
a very rewarding experience. Remember
that management, like any other skill, is
something that you can improve at with
study and practice.
For more information visit Marlene Ward Training – www.marleneward.com.au
Winter 2015 | www.smpmagazine.com.au
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