Managing people is a difficult job, but a hugely rewarding one if you can do it. And not everyone can do it. However, if you can, you’ll want to be the best you can be, and there is definitely a difference between a manager and an effective manager. With that in mind, if you want to be the latter and not the former, then keep reading because we’ve got some things for you to think about and put into practice when and where you can. 

Photo by Jonathan Borba

Set Goals 

Goal setting is a massively important part of being an effective manager. Unless your team has goals to work towards, they’re going to get confused and lost, and they’re going to find it hard to know precisely what it is you want them to do. They might even get stressed because they never quite know if they’re doing the right thing or not. That’s not a good way to motivate a team, and on top of that, any goals you do have aren’t going to be met if no one knows what they are. 

When you set goals, everyone will know exactly what’s expected of them, and they’ll have something to aim for. They’ll also understand more about their role and what they’re being asked to do, helping them feel more involved in the business and more loyal as employees – that’s great if it means they stay in their jobs for longer and you don’t have to spend time and money finding a replacement. 

Take Care Of The Team 

Another thing that an effective manager will do is take care of their team members, both as a group and individually. It all starts with asking for feedback to determine if there’s anything that could be improved and then acting on that feedback (if it makes sense to). You can gain your team’s trust and help them feel valued if you take what they’re saying into account. 

There are also general things you can do that will show you’re taking care of your workers. You might install a break room or make sure the office is well-lit with ergonomic furniture, for example. Or you could treat everyone to lunches from https://www.saintgermaincatering.com/catering/dc-lunch-catering once a month or week to show them you appreciate their hard work. Team building days, flexible working, and all kinds of other things can also be in your arsenal so you can make sure everyone is happy in their jobs. 

Delegate Well 

Delegation is one important task that a manager needs to do as part of their jobs, and doing it well so that the people you delegate feel confident in what you’re asking, and so the work gets done to a high standard is something only an efficient manager will be able to do. 

That’s because, in order to delegate well, you’ll have to know your team well too. You’ll need to know who can do what and where everyone’s skills lie (over and above what they do on a daily basis, that is). You’ll also need to know who can go it alone and who needs some extra training – and then you’ll offer that training. It’s a fine balancing act to delegate in the right way, but an efficient manager will be able to do it without any issues.