As a manager, you either inspire or infuriate, and it all comes down to your leadership style...
Most management textbooks teach a vital principle for setting up an organisation: concentrate on the structure first and then fill the posts with people afterwards.
The structure, whether it be in the physical make-up of the plant or the marketing philosophy of the business, must come first. Only then should you look for people to fill the posts.
But managers often forget that this principle should only apply to the initial setting up of the business structure. And while it is a good philosophy to carry forward into everyday operation as well, the fact remains that: people always come first.
There is no point in having a superb structure and an efficient production and marketing strategy if those who must make it happen are unhappy.
If you are a manager, it's easy to get so caught up in your business objectives that you forget how to communicate effectively with your staff. Here are a few pointers to get you back on track:
The employee doesn't know what you're thinking
Unless you tell them. You might spend hours in meetings, discussing and playing with ideas, making decisions. But unless you clearly communicate the essence of what you have decided, employees will not understand.
When you leave a meeting with board members or your superiors, remember that all that you have decided, all that you have talked about, is hidden from those who need to put it into practice. If you spent 20 minutes in a meeting, demand that you spend at least 50 percent of that time in clearly and effectively communicating the same to those below you.
Those who work for you have feelings
How often this is forgotten. Do you know the names of your employee's children? Do you know why they joined the company? How many times have they been married, do they love sport and where do they live? If your staff feel like you care about them it will encourage them to care about their jobs and the work they do.
People are your most important asset
How often do managers encase themselves in silver suits, silver cars and shiny offices without ever even visiting the workplace of those beneath them?
Raymond Ackerman tells a brilliant story of a client who phoned in the middle of a critical meeting to complain about some yoghurt. He couldn't convince her he was sorry enough, so he got onto an aeroplane to Durban and presented her with a new supply. Here the customer came first, but this personal testimony is evident to show that he treats his staff the same way.
Staff are always watching
What's your game plan? Is it profit before anything else? You'll make money for an extended period only, but then things will start to fall apart. If you don't involve people in every nuance of your personal and capitalistic goal, you can forget about happy employees. How much of the profit goes to your personal bonus? If your wife and kids went with you to Japan last year, did the employees know? More importantly, did you think they wouldn't find out?
Employees need to be nurtured
There are people who work for you who don't even know what a mortgage is, how to fill in a form so as to save money, or how to apply for vehicle finance. Let alone why you're in business. There are even some who genuinely believe that all profits go into your back pocket. Talk, off the record, to some union bosses or, even better, to some workers. The only way people are like machines is that they need to be topped up, and regularly.
Employees prefer motivation to control
Managers should be hesitant of even mentioning the word "control". And any decision in the boardroom should immediately be punctuated with the question, "Does this decision allow for our employees to be encouraged, motivated and inspired"? If not, change it.
Just because you're above them, doesn't mean your employees are below you. It's often inappropriate to share dirty jokes in the canteen with employees, but what's stopping you from extending genuine friendship, exercising good listening skills, and always seeing that the Personnel Manager does, by far, the most important work in the company. He or she should be involved in every decision that is made.
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