We’ve all experienced ‘good’ and ‘bad’ managers, but what defines our version of good? And is our version of good the same experience our colleagues have?
50% of employees who don’t feel valued by their boss plan to look for another job in the next year
Jeff Fermin, Huffpost blog
Words that people would associate with a ‘good’ manager may include:
- Good communicator
- Fair
- Hard-working
- Have a clear vision for their team
- Create a positive working environment.
A ‘bad’ manager on the other hand may:
- Under appreciate their staff
- Ignore poor behaviour
- Be lazy
- Not recognise good performance
Management impact
Managers can have the biggest impact on performance, employee engagement and the economy.
But a manager’s role is not easy. They have to balance providing the right support and training, being a good listener, selecting the right employees for the right roles, setting clear objectives. All of this with organisational pressures of cost savings, limited resources, time constraints and while being expected to increase performance.
Are you really a good manager?
Whether you are new to a manager role, or are an experienced manager, you may feel that you fit into the ‘good’ manager category. But are you good 100% of the time? And are you happy to settle with good, or would you love to be a great manager?
What differentiates a great manager is consistently getting the best out of their team. But how?
Great managers discover the unique workplace preferences of each individual and capitalise on each person’s individual strengths. Great managers value the unique attributes of individuals and identify how to challenge and get each employee to grow and excel in their individual way, appreciating others’ strengths and supporting weaknesses within the team.
This uniqueness not only gives managers an extremely powerful tool to their toolbox, but increases employee engagement and workplace performance.
What do great managers do differently?
Marcus Buckingham stated in his Harvard Business Review – What great Managers do:
Fine shadings of personality, though they may be visible to some and frustrating to others, are crystal clear to and highly valued by great managers. They could no more ignore these subtleties than ignore their own needs and desires figuring out what makes people tick is simply in their nature.
It is essential that a manager has these people management skills, to support and drive the organisation forward. But how does the manager obtain these skills if they don’t come naturally?
Management development is necessary for increasing skills, capabilities and knowledge of managers.
How are great managers made?
This is where DiSC profiling can help. The starting point is for individuals to complete the DiSC psychometric assessment, then their DiSC style will be identified within one of four categories,
- D – Dominance
- i – influence
- S – Steadiness
- C – Conscientiousness
The specific DiSC Management profile, can not only help manager’s discover their own developmental style, but can help improve their 1-1 working relationships, develop personalised action plans, assess potential, learn how to give constructive feedback and learn how to adapt their approach for powerful results.
Commercial edge
This is gold for a manager, as the DiSC profile information from their own Management profile and that of their team, provides a strong commercial edge.
For example, when starting a new project, once they have used DiSC profiling to identify the individual DiSC styles of the project team, they know what each individual will require right from the start.
- C Styles – need to know all of the information from the beginning. With additional detail, lengthy reports and research documents, they will be in their element. Accuracy and perfection is their forte so you no nothing will be missed if they are in charge of this area.
- D styles – just want to get on with the project. They’re not interested in detail, but they will be keen to get things done, move the project along and be keen to take advantage of all opportunities available.
Everyone is different!
The mistake many managers make is believing that all employees are motivated by the same thing, all strive for the same goal and learn in the same way. Even worse – poor managers try to mould employees into ‘the ideal employee’ or have them as clones of themselves.
This is not realistic or good for the organisation.
Never try and change peoples’ styles. Make the effort to learn their individual styles by observing and taking time to talk to them, work with them to see what they can bring to the table.
If you’re keen to understand how you can use Everything DiSC profiling to fuel your own team’s performance, get in touch.
