Being a manager in any industry can be a fulfilling job, but it can also be a difficult one. You will need to create a good team atmosphere whilst achieving the bigger goals. Bad managers cost businesses billions of dollars each year, and having too many of them can bring down a company. Businesses that get it right, and hire managers based on talent will thrive and gain a significant competitive advantage.

1. Good Managers Have the Following Talents
By: Ahmed Banafa, Distinguished Tenured Staff | Faculty | SME | E-Learning Expert | Four-time
winner of instructor of the year award
Being a manager in any industry can be a fulfilling job, but it can also be a difficult one. You
will need to create a good team atmosphere whilst achieving the bigger goals.
Bad managers cost businesses billions of dollars each year, and having too many of them can
bring down a company. Businesses that get it right, and hire managers based on talent will thrive
and gain a significant competitive advantage.
Gallup has found that one of the most important decisions companies make is simply whom they
name manager. In fact, Gallup finds that companies fail to choose the candidate with the right
talent for the job 82% of the time.
Reviewing many studies, I have compiled the following list to define ―a Good Manager‖.
Good managers have the following talents:
1. Do Your Job– First and foremost do your own job.
2. Be open to new ways of looking at things - The best managers are flexible,
adaptable, and closely attuned to their environment. Rigidity is the enemy of
progress. Don’t be afraid to shift the paradigm and move away from, ―This is the
way we’ve always done it here.‖
3. Expect excellence – Set high but not unattainable standards and expect your
employees to meet them. The best managers are ultimately not those who are

2. ―toughest‖ or ―nicest,‖ but those who get the best results from people in their
charge. If your employees know you demand excellence from yourself, they’re more
likely to find it in themselves.
4. Make sure your employees know – clearly – where they need to focus - Be sure
your employees’ job objectives clearly reflect them. Well-conceived, measurable
employee objectives are a manager’s best friend.
5. Protect your time as if it were gold– Time is an underrated but crucial management
asset, essential to thoughtful decision making. Managers are prioritized well,
delegated effectively, and left themselves with enough time to carefully think through
what they most needed to.
6. Communicate regularly by providing meaningful feedback in real time – Strong
managers invariably are excellent communicators. Providing ample feedback – both
positive and negative – is a core skill. Make yourself readily available to those you
manage. Be there, be present, and be accessible.
7. Don’t duck conflict, but deal with it directly and fairly – The best managers aren’t
―conflict avoiders‖ – they address problems quickly and fairly. Employees are keen
observers; they note who takes action when needed and who doesn’t. They respect
managers who confront difficult situations, just as they’ll lose respect for those who
chronically avoid them.
8. Motivate every singleemployee to take action and engage them with a compelling
mission and vision.
9. Have the assertivenessto drive outcomes and the ability to overcome adversity and
resistance.
10. Create a culture of clear accountability.
11. Buildrelationshipsthat create trust, open dialogue, and full transparency.
12. Make decisionsthat are based on productivity, not politics.
13. Acknowledge The Positive– See the positives in your staff and their work. Positivity
breeds positivity.
14. Be Vulnerable– If you make a mistake, be big about it and apologize.Being honest
will help you create a culture of honesty.
15. Be Real with People– The way we work is changing. You don’t have to be
superhuman or untouchable. Be the real human being that you are.
16. Lead by Example– If you want your staff to behave in a certain way (professional,
good team players), then lead by example.
17. Be Self-Aware– Be aware of your moods and how you communicate.
18. Trust Yourself-At the end of the day, there is no one right way to be a manager.
Trust yourself and learn through your mistakes.

3. Conventional selection processes are a big contributor to inefficiency in management practices,
when Gallup asked U.S. managers why they believed they were hired for their current role; they
commonly cited their success in a previous non-managerial role or their tenure in their company
or field.
Most companies promote workers into managerial positions because they seemingly deserve it,
rather than because they have the talent for it. This practice doesn’t work. Experience and skills
are important, but people’s talents — the naturally recurring patterns in the ways they think, feel,
and behave — predict where they’ll perform at their best. Talents are the building blocks of great
performance. Knowledge, experience, and skills develop our talents, but unless we possess the
right talents for our job, no amount of training or experience will matter.
However, when companies can increase their number of talented managers and double the rate of
engaged employees, they achieve, on average, 147% higher earnings per share than their
competition.
It’s important to note — especially in the current economic climate — that finding great
managers doesn’t depend on market conditions or the current labor force. Large companies have
approximately one manager for every 10 employees, and Gallup finds that one in 10 people
possess the inherent talent to manage. When you do the math, it’s likely that someone on each
team has the talent to lead. More likely, it’s an employee with high managerial potential waiting
to be discovered.
References
http://workawesome.com/management/how-to-be-a-good-manager-8-quick-tips/
http://www.forbes.com/sites/victorlipman/2014/01/01/6-fundamentals-that-can-make-you-a-better-
manager-in-2014/
http://blogs.hbr.org/2014/03/why-good-managers-are-so-rare/