The first words that come to mind when thinking about management are “plan, organize, coordinate and control” (Mintzberg 1989, p. 9) as Henry Fayol first laid them down in 1916. These are the four things that a manager is supposed to do. In my opinion, they tend to generalize and describe vaguely a manager’s job.
In spite of this fact, there are a number of characteristics that can be depicted from them. The qualities of a good manager should concern whether he can organize people rather than focus on his individual characteristics.I don’t think there is a pattern that a manager should always follow; success can be equally satisfactory for very different managers. Often, their success is guaranteed through the effort of their employees; some of the best proposals come from the employees on the front line and it is the leader’s job to opt for the right one.
Also, in complicated situations, it is this effort that keeps things moving. But as this can’t always happen, the manager should know that there are some limits and he should also have the courage to adopt major changes, as he is “the nerve center of his organization’s information system” (Mintzberg 1971 , p.B97). Another thing that has limits is communication. Although it is well known that communication is the key to solving problems, in order to be efficient, it must be made between people with equivalent status. Success motivates people while repeated failure discourages them.
However, failure is a part of everyone’s life, especially a manager’s; if not, it means that he is not testing his limits enough. But he should always know when to take risks and when to play it safe. Managers need to make sense of their world and be able to make interventions that solve problems, help other staff, and ultimately make a difference. ”(Harris 2002, p. 3). A good manager will always face problems and pressure, but what makes him stand out from the crowd is his ability to overcome and analyze them as part of a whole.
Also, confronting issues from different angles is another characteristic that highlights him. As A. L. Minkes and C. S.
Nuttall describe in their book, Business Behaviour and Management Structure, “managerial perception is a statement about reality. ” (Minkes and Nuttall 1985, p. 2). In other words, a manager’s work can include various ideas, but the ones that really count should be the relevant targets that will boost up his organization’s level. Mixing theory with practice is the recipe for success so theory should always be a starting point, a useful basis towards a better understanding of different concepts. Therefore, the management domain leaves no room for superficiality.
In order to obtain the best results and to develop as a group, or, at a higher level, as an organization, the leader needs to be very well prepared; he should be capable of recognising good ideas, projects, work from scratch and to anticipate the week points that might arise. In order to make progress in their employees’ work, managers should admit when they are wrong. Accepting that they are not always right gives the impression of being more approachable; it will also improve the team communication and make the working environment seem more relaxed.A good leader is aware that he will never stop learning, that “the key is learning and then helping others to learn” (Harris 2002, p.
13). Top managers are always in need of power, but this power has to be very well controlled so as not to create delicate situations or tension between the other members of the organization. It is best achieved by using influence and not personal success. “Successful managers cope with their dependence on others by being sensitive to it, by eliminating or avoiding unnecessary dependence, and by establishing power over those others.Good managers then use that power to help them plan, organize, staff, budget, evaluate, and so on.
In other words, it is primarily because of the dependence inherent in managerial jobs that the dynamics of power necessarily form an important part of a manager’s process. ” (Porter et. al. 2003, p.
130). A good leader will never want to do things on his own because his job is to influence others, as Rosemary Stewart described a manager such as “someone who gets things done with the aid of other people” (Stewart 1967 cited in Boddy 2008, p. 0). Managers must be aware that change is a never ending process; but also that people might react differently to it. Many people fear change so it is up to the manager to take them out of their comfort zone and make them have a positive reaction. It is a leader’s job to explain why change is needed, how it will improve the activity of the organization and make sure that everybody is on board.
If employees’ opinions are taken into consideration, then cooperation is established and changes are accepted much easier.However, change for the sake of change must not be encouraged. Only when change will improve the business’ activity should it be taken into account. It is often said that great leaders are not made but born.
I disagree with this idea because I believe that a successful leader is the result of hard work and determination. If you can accept that you will never stop learning, that experience can be gained in time and that skills can be constantly improved, then you have all the chances of becoming a good manager and maybe one day a successful leader.
