A Deeper Look at What Makes a Good Manager

In this post we’ll expand on each of these factors that make a good manager and give some examples to make it more clear how each come together.

a. Can think a job through step by step.


This is important as many managers do not take a moment to figure out each step in the sequence of a job that needs to be done. The result is a job that goes off target due to surprises and these surprises get staff in trouble. And your staff will only get burned for you so many times before they simply stop listening.

Another reason this is important is that it will give you a bird’s-eye-view of a job. This gives you time to predict and make adjustments.

Joe, a production manager, is building a house. He has a crew, the material and the finances. To get this job done successfully he looks it over and works out each step; laying the foundation, putting the frame in place, doing the plumbing, wiring, etc, doing the finish work on the outside and inside of the house, all the way to the doors opening. He would include which worker was assigned to each task and when each task had to be done in the correct sequence so the house got done in time.

b. The ability to communicate what it will take to get a job done.

Once you’ve worked out the sequence and targets of a job it’s important to let your staff know what’s coming.

Often staff is only given minimal information on targets related to each staff member. This works at times, but if you want to increase production more information is better. It gives your staff an overview of the team aspect and gets everyone of them on the same page.

It lets them know the overall plan, the sequence and the targets that they have to get done.

The key here is to be clear on the targets issued. Make it simple and easy to understand.

Taking the example above, Joe, the production manager, takes the sequence he worked out above and writes this up in tasks and assigns each task to the applicable workers. Once he has this worked out Joe hands this out so his crew knows what needs to be done.

c. Willingness to guide people.

The next point is that you have to be willing to direct and guide your staff. You have to know that your direction is correct (or is the best that you can give) and see that the targets you issue are actually followed.

As part of this you need to be interested in what your staff is doing and push them to get their targets met. Give them real time and date targets to meet. If they don’t meet the targets you need to find out why and help them come up with solutions (not solve their problems, but help them come up with the solution). Then get them to get it done.

So, now that Joe’s crew knows what needs to be done, he then works to see that each task is completed and helps to answer questions, pushes through any problems and sees that the task is actually met. Joe may find that he has to explain a task more clearly or make a crew member understand why it needs to be done by a certain time. In this way he is guiding the job through.

d. Persistence and enthusiasm on a given course.

As the manager you must instill life into each day of production. I don’t mean with pom-poms, but with a reason. You must provide the reason why they need to meet the targets you’ve set and it can’t just be “because you or management said so.” It has to be a real and valid reason, a purpose for getting the job done.

Sometimes you have to step back and look at what you’re doing and work this out. The purpose can be a production target that indicates a certain amount of growth or viability, or a specific target that will get all the staff a bonus, or get a specific aspect of production done so the next major step can be executed and what this will mean for the department, company or business.

Joe, the manager we talked about in the earlier examples, would use this on the job, stating the reason for a task, when it needs to be done and which other targets depend on it. He would say to the guy in charge of laying the foundation, “we need to get this foundation poured today so framing can start by tomorrow. This will keep us on target and we can get this house ready for the market and get us our on-time bonus.” This would keep his crew focused and working as a team.

e. Compassion and understanding for those who work for and with you.

This is a simple point, but often missed. Be caring and understanding with your staff. If they look distracted, upset or lost, take the time to find out what’s happening. It could be something simple that they need to get off their chest or something more dramatic that could affect every- thing they do.
Whatever it is, by getting them to communicate about it, they will feel better and will be less distracted.

But don’t get caught up in solving what is eating at them. Just show care, ask simple questions to get them talking and acknowledge what they say. “Ok, how can you solve it” and more than likely they’ll be able to figure it out.
For example, Sally is managing a real estate sales team and notices one of her salesman seems distracted and has had less production. She would pull him aside, for privacy, and ask him what is happening. She remains understanding and asks enough questions so her salesman feels he has said enough. Sally would let her salesman know that she understood what he said and then would ask how he thought he could deal with it. She would let him figure it out and when he was a bit more upbeat, she would get him back in the game.

f. High moral standing

As manager you have to set an example for your staff. This means being productive during work hours, not violating any of the office rules even though you can obeying laws and setting a good example in your personal conduct.

Your staff look up to you for what you expect from them. They will try to get away with whatever they see you get away with and if you set a good example they will learn from this and try to live a more ethical and productive life, which will improve their production at the office.

These are the basic steps of being a good manager. They can be learned and improved on until they are mastered and once they are mastered you will be able to do your job that much better and see the result in your department, office and/or company. And even before you master them you will see improvement around you and be encouraged about the future.

What Makes a Good Manager?

Okay, you’re the manager and you need to figure out what you’re doing as you’ve never done this before. A lot is riding on you and a lot of people are depending on how you manage.

Or maybe you’re the owner or an executive and you need to hire a manager, but can’t find the time and you are stuck with someone who doesn’t know what they’re doing. Maybe you have to get the current manager up to doing the job.

Well, the key question here is; what makes a good manager?

You already know the growth of a department, business or company is dependent upon and limited to the ability and skill of the manager, which makes answering this question that much more important.

Some could think its luck, personality, genetics, or the school one attended? There are many possibilities here and it makes your head spin. By isolating the important factors we make it possible for anyone to improve their abilities and learn how to become a good manager.

So, here are the key points that make a good manager:

a. Can think a job through step by step.
b. Has the ability to communicate what it will take to get a job done.
c. Has the willingness to guide people.
d. Has persistence and enthusiasm on a given course.
e. Possesses compassion and understanding for those who work for and with him/her..
f. Has a high moral standing.

This may not be every aspect of a good manager, but it is the basic factors. Each point is something that can be learned and drilled and once you have these down you can add to them and improve your management skills even more.

Lack of Management Skill Prevents Practice Growth

A practice is only as good as the management skills of those who are managing it.

One problem is "natural-born" managers are hard to come by.

Far too often when an owner/doctor hires someone to manage, with the "perfect" degree, that person has really only studied the theory of management, which more than likely was a study of business laws or case studies of past failed or successful practices with absolutely no practical experience included (or, if you’re lucky, minimal experience).

Or, a person decides to break out on his own and manage a his or her own practice and yet lacks the actual management skills to take it beyond the dream stage or only up to the struggling stage, he finds that he can't breakthrough some invisible barriers.

This can be seen in the management of many different fields of medicine, such as dental, general medicine, optometry, veterinarian, specialized fields of medicine, chiropractic, and many others areas. The problem is their schooling didn’t provide the training they would need to start and actually run, operate and expand a private practice. The problem here is they don't generally realize this until they are up to their eye balls in lack of viable revenue and threatened with failure.

This can only last for so long, before the owner/doctor decides to throw in the towel.

Actually, this is the reason small and medium sized practices fail and is the cause of a great deal of heartache, broken families and failed dreams.

It really doesn't matter how much you want it, how pure of heart you are, the amount of money you have to pour into it, etc, etc.

It all boils down to one thing: MANAGEMENT SKILL.

The good news is that one can learn management skills if one realizes that management is a science all to itself and one is willing to work hard to learn it and then works hard to establish a good management structure for ones practice.