The leader has a great responsibility, he has to solve a variety of problems. What skills and qualities should an effective manager have? In the article we will talk about what a leader should be and what he should be able to do.
What is a leader?
Any process or organization needs a person to manage and control them. This is the leader, or manager. This concept combines several aspects.
The leader is:
- a person vested with authority in the organization according to his official position;
- a person leading a group of people, formally or informally empowered to manage them;
- a person who is obligated by his duty to make decisions.
Often, the term "manager" is used as a synonym for this concept. The many diverse types of activities that a leader has to do require special skills, knowledge, and qualities from him. They are acquired by training or with experience.
In the resume for filling a manager’s vacancy at any level, the first place is taken by the manager’s professional skills, and then his personal qualities. However, one thing is inseparable from the other: the one who directs other people must have certain moral principles and a positive image.
Executive functions
In each organization, the leader is vested with different powers. But in general, the main functions of a manager are as follows:
- Analysis of the current situation, making forecasts and plans. To do this, he will need experience in strategic planning, the ability to conduct research.
- Coordination of work of departments and employees, organization of the production process. The duties of the leader include the need to lead people, competently distribute authority, and be able to set goals.
- Staff motivation. The leader must be a good psychologist in order to be able to inspire employees to work effectively.
- Control of the production process and the implementation of tasks, rewarding employees, censure and sanctions. A whole series of personal qualities and professional skills of a leader are needed here, including responsibility, ability to evaluate work, competently criticize employees, without reducing their motivation and productivity in work.
Manager Requirements
Looking through the list of qualities, abilities and skills that are listed in vacancy announcements for the position of leader, one can only wonder in surprise: do such people really exist ?! The general list of requirements includes the following:
- high level of computer skills;
- knowledge of business etiquette, business communication rules;
- experience working with a team, managing people;
- ability to make decisions quickly;
- experience in developing a development strategy for a company, structural unit;
- Correct oral and written language;
- skills in compiling business documents;
- experience in negotiating, concluding deals, sales;
- time management skills;
- ability to organize your work and team work.
Also, sometimes additional requirements are imposed for knowledge of foreign languages, experience in a particular industry.
Professional skills
The leader must be, first of all, competent in the business that he manages. In their resumes, applicants applying for high positions list such skills that can help them fill an interesting vacancy:
- experience in managing a team with a certain number of people;
- management accounting experience;
- ability to delegate authority;
- ability to plan and control the production process;
- ability to make short and long-term plans;
- experience in the selection, assessment and motivation of staff.
The leader must also be able to distribute the organization’s resources, form a team, collect information about the external and internal environment of the company, analyze and build on its basis the development plans of the company. The manager must be able to work in crisis conditions, own managerial technologies.
Personal qualities
The importance of the manager’s professional skills cannot be denied, but besides them, the manager must have a number of personal characteristics. Surveys of mid-level employees show that employees value qualities such as:
- Adequacy. He must correctly assess the situation and respond accordingly.
- Honesty. The manager should fairly encourage and punish, be honest in the allocation of resources.
- Responsibility. The leader should be able to take on all the consequences for decisions.
- Sociability and responsiveness. The leader must be able to communicate with people, remain a person even in the most difficult situations.
- Self confidence.
- Optimism.
- Purposefulness and initiative.
- Punctuality.
- Energy.
- Balance and stress resistance.
Head Image
Since the manager should be an example and a leader in his team, the charisma and business image of the leader are important.
Image - this is how employees, customers, partners perceive the manager.
This concept includes characteristics of a different order. This is, first of all, the appearance. The manager should be neat, dressed in accordance with the requirements of business etiquette. The costume should emphasize its status, reflect professional affiliation.
The image also includes professional leadership skills that allow employees and partners to evaluate the competence of a manager. This also includes verbal and non-verbal skills. It is important how a person speaks and writes, how he expresses a thought with the help of facial expressions, gestures, body position in space.
Head's speech
A manager is a person who constantly communicates with other people. Therefore, it is extremely important for him to be able to communicate with them. And the basis of the culture of business communication is competent oral and written speech.
The leader must know the rules and regulations of the official business style of speech, be able to write business letters, conduct telephone conversations, production conversations. Speech is the most important tool for influencing other people, so the leader must master it masterfully. Effective business speech should be clear, concise, competent, clear, logical.
Code of Ethics
An effective business image of a professional is based on strong moral principles. It was not in vain that the honor of entrepreneurs was important for a long time. Modern business and professional ethics are the basis of the reputation of any businessman, leader. The main principles of professional morality are:
- Honesty and decency. Deception destroys relationships, reputation, and the leader should not allow it. A professional should always be honest with partners and with himself.
- Respect for the freedom of someone else and one’s own. The leader must recognize the independence of subordinates in opinions and thoughts.
- Tolerance of other people's shortcomings and opinions.
- Justice. The manager must, in accordance with moral principles, allocate resources, reward and punish employees.
- Delicacy and tact. The leader must be sympathetic to employees, understand their human manifestations, weaknesses.
In the article, we examined what business and moral qualities a manager should have.