How to Properly Manage Employees
How to Become a Strong Leader as a Manager
When it comes to running and maintaining a successful business, managers are key to ensuring everything operates smoothly. The tasks and employees they manage should be met with high standards and strong leadership. This article will cover some of the most practical ways managers can properly manage and lead employees in order to maintain the success of a business.
Dr. Jordan Sudberg says a critical part of effective management is open communication. Strong leaders clearly define objectives, roles and expectations so every employee knows exactly what needs to be done. Managers should also communicate with employees by providing them with feedback, asking them how they are doing, answering their questions and making themselves available for face-to-face conversation whenever possible.
The communication aspect of strong leadership should also be supported by formal and informal training. This is because along with knowing what needs to be done, employees need guidance in understanding how things should be done. When employees learn by example through formal and informal training, they become more productive. This is because training helps them reduce time spent working on a project and increases their self-confidence.
Dr. Jordan Sudberg also acknowledges that motivating and encouraging employees is key to effective management. Managers can motivate their employees through verbal praise, raises, bonuses, company outings and other rewards. Strong leaders also provide words of encouragement to their employees throughout the day and the duration of different projects. Regardless of the type, motivation and encouragement is extremely important, because it helps employees feel noticed, appreciated and valued by their managers. The important thing for managers to remember is because every employee is different, what motivates or encourages one employee might not work for another. This is why a strong leader is willing to get to know each of his or her employees on a personal level, so they can figure out which methods of motivation and encouragement work best.
Another way managers can properly lead their employees is by recognizing and taking care of any conflicts that occur within the workplace. Whenever conflicts arise, managers must act swiftly to reduce or eliminate them in order to avoid drops in productivity, employee turnover or the creation of an unsafe work environment. Communication is also central to conflict resolution, because effective managers make themselves available to their employees whenever possible.
One final way managers can properly manage and lead their employees is by being themselves. Despite their added duties and responsibilities, managers are real people just like their employees. They deal with stress inside and outside the workplace, they experience positive and negative emotions, and they have their own personal lives. By willingly sharing their thoughts, emotions and experiences with employees, managers exhibit strong leadership skills and set a great example for everyone around them. This helps them establish and maintain strong relationships with their employees and helps build trust between both parties. At the end of the day, it’s these strong relationships and interpersonal skills that help top-tier leaders separate themselves from the rest of the pack.
