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How to be a Good Business Manager

As managers, we sometimes become so preoccupied with our roles, our clients, the sales figures (never high enough), the production costs (never low enough) that we forget the "human" side of managing. After many years in senior management, I now believe staff need to see that their mangers are fallible - have feelings - have doubts and fears.

For many years I set myself a standard of not showing my staff when I was angry, frustrated or just plain fed up...with head office, with clients, with the company politics. An incident with my Production Manager a number of years ago really forced me to rethink my self-imposed standard.

Andrew was a wonderful Production Manager - keen, enthusiastic, conscientious, demanding of himself and his staff. But more importantly, he was a real thinker. He wanted to know more just the plans of the company - he wanted to understand the feelings and responses of the staff to the plans.

And it was actually on this topic that Andrew taught me something extremely important about management.

This particular day had been extremely demanding - conversations with the General Manager (located in Sydney) about sales (again - never high enough), and additional projects to be completed in unrealistic time frames (nothing unusual). I was actually feeling very low - very pressured - as if the whole of the world (or at least the whole of the Western Australian operation) was on my shoulders. And as I walked into Andrew's office to discuss the new head office ideas with him he could tell something was wrong. I wasn't my usual cheery self. We were in the middle of talking about the new projects, and what he needed to do and organise, when he just stopped, looked at me and asked me how I really felt - felt about the new projects, the pressure, the demands, the new general manager. I began saying what I felt I should say. But Andrew interrupted me and asked again "...but how do you really feel?". I walked over to the door, closed it, sat down and told him. I was very upset, I! felt under enormous pressure, I felt head office had no understanding of our situation (and that they really didn't care anyhow). I told him just how I felt. As he listened I realised that this is what he was asking. I knew I had made the right decision in telling him just how I felt.

By his simple question, Andrew forced me to review one of my beliefs about being a manager. Up to that point I had (subconsciously) believed that as a manager I should always keep my negative emotions to myself - that I should not allow my staff to see these, that I should always be the strong one, decisive, determined, focussed.

Allowing yourself to be "human" with your staff gives them a greater understanding of you - it builds relationships, develops respect, adds to their confidence, lessens your pressure. But let's be clear on what being "human" does not mean - it does not mean denigrating the company, clients or other team members in front of your staff - very unprofessional, and potentially highly destructive. It does not mean being so open that you are transparent - this can result in your staff feeling you are shallow and not to be trusted. It does not mean treating each situation in exactly the same manner - different situations, indeed different staff, require a manager to be flexible, sensitive and adaptable.

Allowing yourself to be "human" can have enormous benefits. These benefits really come down to increasing the effectiveness of your communications. This results in developing great working relationships - to the satisfaction of all. Let's face it - we all spend a great deal of time in our careers. And the relationships we have with people at work really can "make or break" our enjoyment of work. So, as a manager (or simply as a colleague) next time one of your staff asks you how you truly feel about a work issue, think about how your honest communication will create a great place to work.

Genevieve Armson BSc (Hons) MBA is the director of Realisations Consultancy, specialising in creating stimulating and motivating corporate cultures. She can be contacted on (08) 9470 2662 or info@realisations.com.au

http://www.realisations.com.au