Leadership Skills for Managers ~ By Ahtisham Khero

LEADERSHIP SKILLS FOR MANAGERS

We see in almost every organization managerial positions. They are hired to manage and work as a liaison among the top management and staff. But what is the role of a manager? And do they need leadership skills to be effective managers for their respectable companies?

What is a manager and what does a manager do?

In my opinion, a manager is the one who helps others to get their job done.  The one who may be planning, directing, hiring, delegating, organizing, assigning, disciplining and controlling and doing regular office routine stuff.

• He directs the work, rather than performing it.
• He is responsible for hiring, firing, training and disciplining employees.
• He exercises the authority
• He serves as a bridge between employees and upper management.

On the other hand, what does a leader do?

• Serves to create new aims
• Initiates a new course of action
• Strives to make a difference
• Is willing to sacrifice
• Exhibits positive energy
• Welcomes change

Leaders are never born or made but there are a few characteristics that leaders have to adopt. And those characteristics are:

• COURAGE

A leader who dares to do something outside of the box? And when one decides to go outside of the box, he should be prepared for opposition. One tool that I am sharing for this preparation is called the ABCD Approach…

A= Anticipate Objection

Anticipate objection means don’t restrict yourself because of fear of opposition or hard criticism.  Just take the constructive feedback and foresee. Look forward with courage to move on.

B= Benefitize

This term is used to see what benefits can be achieved and delivered ahead to others. 

C= Categorize

Arrange it in phases as it could be executed.  Most of the time thinking outside of the idea box is not easy to execute if it is not classified properly.

D= Then Develop your plan.

You need to have a complete plan from start to the end along with all course of actions at every phase.

• PRIDE

It is also one of the characteristics of leadership. Not only does a leader take pride in his accomplishments, he also creates an atmosphere that allows others to do the same.

• INFLUENCE

The key to a leader in today’s era is influence, not authority. Leaders know how to influence others; how to persuade them to a higher calling. They guide others with getting things done by motivating them.

• MULTILINGUAL ABILITIES

It was Joseph Juran, who noted that two languages are spoken in an organization.

1. “LANGUAGE OF THINGS” - spoken by non-managerial officers, supervisors and employees.
2. “LANGUAGE OF MONEY” - spoken by pop-management because their focus is to generate revenue and grow.

Joseph Juran emphasizes for the managers that lead, it would be wise for them to also be bilingual. 

CONCLUSION:

Leadership is always an exciting path to pursue. Leadership in this new millennium is like a colorful highway on which traffic moves on breakneck speed. If you have accepted today’s business arena then you should go beyond your managerial role. You should have faith in your courage, pride, sincerity and adaptability, along with an organizational bilingual approach. If you are able to speak more than one business language, you will have the confidence to influence others in a positive direction that will not only inspire yourself as a leader but will definitely inspire your team as a whole.