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Showing posts with the label management skills

Managing for Others or Managing for Yourself

Managing is an art form that relied heavily on critical thinking and communication skills to keep large groups of people working toward the same goals. Stronger managers focus on the development of their teams to meet market needs. People who can manage for others versus themselves is a great asset any organization. Managers who can meet performance goals and do so in a way that creates a better department should be in high demand.  It is in our natural best interest to manage for ourselves and this can make it a difficult competing ideology against managing for others. When someone becomes aware they should manager for others they have done so against the backdrop of years of learning, insight and reflection.   People who create these conclusions have thought about what is important. They must also be able to step above their biological and emotional needs to take a higher road in workplace decisions. When choices are required they look to promote the group over themselve

The Benefits of Active Listening for Employee Relations

It is difficult for manages to understand their workplace and how to improve performance if they are not actively listening to their employees. This means listening to their conversations, paying attention when employees are talking, and trying to find improvements in the workplace that creates congruence between employee desires and firm performance. Managers that listen are better able to coach and counsel their employees to higher levels of functioning. Listening is a skill that takes considerable time to develop but can be learned with practice. Active listening is in presence form where the manager listens without interrupting the employee. They may ask probing questions but ultimately want the employee to express themselves fully because this adds to the managers knowledge of both the employee and the organization. Those managers who fail to actively listen often find that employees no longer bring their issues to them nor are they enthusiastic about speaking up about opera

Why Must Managers Be Strong at Understanding People?

People are the most complex and confusing things in our known world. They are full of different shades of every type of personality and belief system that makes each person unique. Despite these differences, humans are also very basic and need certain things from the workplace and each other. Managers that understand the basics of human behavior and personality are also able to manage those personalities at work. A strong manager has two important essential skills that include the ability to manage people and the industry knowledge to understand the processes they are overseeing. The later being gained through experience working in their respective fields with the former gained through education and reflection. Managers that can both manage people and understand their processes can find congruence between the two. Industry knowledge helps the manager fulfill the function of his or her job. It is a result of taking practical experience and using it to ensure you are meeting company

What Your Email Says, and Doesn’t Say About You

By: Michael S. Miller  As an online learner, you have the opportunity to develop and refine many skills.   It is likely the most widely practiced, or even the most important would be developing effective communication skills. The majority, if not all of your communication in the online learning environment, is in the form of written communication.   Communication takes place continuously in this environment with both your instructor and your classmates. Therefore, it is critical to make a good impression; not to mention, “More effective communication practices lead to a more effective learning process” (Venable, 2011, para. 2). Whether you are engaging in a threaded discussion forum, submitting a written assignment, or sending an email, your expression of your thoughts and ideas have much to say about you as a person.   In the online environment, it is rather easy to click ‘reply,’ type up a quick response, and hit ‘send’ without giving much thought about what you have jus

Retaining Competitive Advantages through Specialized Human Capital

Organizations seek to develop uniqueness that will allow them to create competitive advantages that allow them to better compete on international markets. The combination of human capital and organizational factors helps develop those firm specific qualities. The development of human capital through firm-specific skills will further retain the talent of organizational members and encourage lower levels of knowledge loss or competitive posturing. Competitive advantage is a unique organizational strength a company develops over competitors through the offering of higher products, value, or benefits that justifies higher prices on the market. It is a condition whereby an organization is more efficient and productive than those it competes with. Such firms are seen as competitive, “ if it is able to create more economic value than the marginal competitor (Peteraf & Barney, 2003: 314). Through this competitiveness, additional benefits are earned by the organization that other

Ethics and Moral Courage in Leadership Positions

Organizations seek to develop stronger levels of ethical business practices in order to limit negative employee behaviors that can damage public image, lessen investor confidence, and improve upon contractual relationships with stakeholders. The first step in developing an ethical organization is to hire an ethical leader. Through proper leadership modeling in moral courage and ethical behaviors employees develop standards that apply to their own behaviors.  Developing ethical organizations, and meeting the needs of people, requires strength of character (Hunter, 2003). It is difficult for leaders to deal with the multiple issues that often face them from competing interests. When leaders use an ethical value system they have an anchored value point that allows them to judge the validity of these competing interests.  Strong leaders should have an impetus to act with moral purpose.   Such conation requires moral courage, moral efficacy and psychological ownership over one’