Companies are no longer satisfied with having in their ranks professionals with great knowledge, experts in processes, in markets or in any other matter. In addition to this, they currently demand management skills. Let’s see in this post today how we can improve them.
Why is it important to have management skills?
In the 21st century we are facing a new economic and social paradigm, a globalized environment that demands closeness, with large doses of uncertainty, with an increasingly informed consumer who wants to interact with the company, with great environmental and social challenges and with contexts as changing as they are often turbulent. A situation in which, in order to achieve a competitive advantage in the market, we not only have to know how to manufacture the product, but also know and meet the expectations of the client (internal or external), of the shareholders, of society, of the environment, etc And these are challenges that require a lot of managerial, social and personal intelligence in companies.
Techniques to improve management skills
In short, we are talking about improving the following list of skills. It is not a closed or exhaustive list, but it does include the main current management powers:
- communication ability. Without fluid communication it is not possible to maintain a positive work climate, it is more difficult to influence customer decisions, negotiate with interlocutors or simply transmit the appropriate information at the right time. Fluid communication, verbal and non-verbal, greases the structures of organizations and allows efficient operation. Listening actively, empathizing with the interlocutor, being assertive and showing expressiveness and interest in a sincere and balanced way are some basic tips for having this skill.
- The leadership, as the ability to influence people in their behavior and direct them towards the common goal. Although it is true that many people are born with almost innate leadership skills, this much-needed skill can also be practiced in work groups. Work on aspects such as the ability to teamwork, delegate, give feedbackKnowing how to motivate, determining objectives, goals and priorities, being flexible or transmitting confidence to our collaborators are key points to improve our leadership.. Leadership skills are also worked on with a good dose of self-confidence and self-awareness. It is necessary for the manager to know his qualities, to enhance the good ones and work on those less positive aspects.
- The ability to make decisions and solve problems. Linked to the ability to collect relevant information, critical and analytical spirit, and speed and agility to relate data to solutions.
- performance orientationto the objectives, to the results… Not only in your case, but to know how to transmit this need to the whole team with enthusiasm to encourage the motivation and commitment of the group.
- Flexibilityunderstood not only as the ability to adapt to different situations – not always positive – but also related to the Orientation to change and negotiation. And, linking with this ability we would talk about the creativity and innovation capacity, as that social ability that enables us to generate new ideas that add value, to do things differently to do them better. Creativity and innovation can be worked on with a multitude of techniques and dynamics (mental maps, brainstorming, etc.) but some basic tips to foster this ability have more to do with: clearing our minds of limiting beliefs, learning to question what , the how and why of our activities, reading, learning about and exchanging experiences and, among other things, having fun and relaxing. Stress is a great killer of creativity!
- The resilience. This term, taken from physics, tells us about the human capacity to face adversities and not only overcome them but come out stronger. A resilient organization is one that faces uncertainty, crises, and critical situations and not only overcomes them but manages to become positive as a result of these events. Resilience as a management skill that we must have in organizations is linked to attitudes of tenacity, effort, optimism and improvement.
- The ability to work with enthusiasm and passion. The magical ingredients. The illusion would be the hope of achieving a desired and attractive goal. Something closely linked to motivation and commitment when transposing the concept to the business world. Passion is an intense feeling that directs our will towards someone or something. Again, an attitude linked to motivation. Passion is the engine of perseverance and orientation towards the achievement of results. How to work on these items is somewhat complex, but one that we can associate with optimism.
The good news is that all these abilities, which are not always innate, can be worked on with training and practice. For example, one of the most effective techniques is executive coaching.
Do you dare to do it? What do you think are your most outstanding managerial skills?
Related course: Advanced Business Management Course