This article is for those of you who have been recently promoted to manager or maybe have been managing for a while but have become a bit stale. It serves as a reminder that good management doesn’t just happen.
Being good at anything is often a combination of raw talent and skill development. A skilled archer could be handed a very average bow and still hit the center of the target. Likewise, a simple recipe and ordinary ingredients in the hands of a master chef would result in a delightful meal. But here’s the reality, the success enjoyed by both the archer and the chef were achieved by combining innate talent with training and development. The same is true for good managers.
Getting things done through people is the classic definition of management. Based on this list of responsibilities, a significant percent of your job as a manager is the development of people. Managers are in the people development business.
There are several reasons why some managers achieve extraordinary results, while others just seem to eke by. I’d like to share some thoughts on why there aren’t more good managers out there and what could be done to change that trend.
