What Makes a Great Manager?

All business managers have a certain set of skills acquired from their previous experience that mold them professionally—allowing them to form their own unique leadership style. While no leadership style is "wrong", a Gallup study found that companies fail to choose the candidate with the right talent for the job 82 percent of the time.

When looking to hire someone new or promote within for a managerial position, you'll want to ensure the person carries these 10 leadership qualities.

Honesty

In any relationship, honesty is critically important. You want to know that the person is telling the truth to you and to others they communicate with and that you also feel comfortable with being open and honest with them as well.

The best managers tell the truth, regardless if it's what you want to hear or not. Being transparent and honest can certainly help a team grow from within allowing business to flourish on the outside. Additionally, an honest manager effortlessly is comprised of the many other qualities that make great managers.

Empathy

When you think of the term "boss" or "manager", what words come to mind? Authoritative. In charge. Ruling. Intimidating. I'm sure nothing sugar-coated like "empathetic" or "caring"...am I right?

In order to be a successful manager, you must possess an empathetic mannerism. This emotional intelligence for your associates can help build trust and motivation within the workplace instead of tearing them down during a time when encouragement and understanding are needed.

A Mentor For Their Team

Along with being empathetic, a great manager must also have the drive to mentor their associates. Before becoming a manager within your current organization, did you have a previous leader guiding you to be the best you possibly could by taking the time to pass on their knowledge and mentoring you along your journey? Now is your chance to pay it forward to your associates and allow them to grow in their career to their full potential as well. Who knows, maybe one of them can be a great asset to your executive team in the future.

Encourages Open Communication

It can be intimidating for an entry-level associate to openly communicate with their manager about an issue they have encompassed. That's why it's important for a manager to encourage open communication between associates and managers. This can effectively bridge the gap between the two and ensure issues are being resolved and associates always feel included.

Responsibility

A great manager must understand that their job duties require a lot of responsibility. On top of their own responsibilities, a manager is also responsible for all of their associates, including their mistakes, too. Along with this brings the accountability aspect of tackling your decisions, whether they are good or bad.

Focus

The heavy amount of responsibility that lies on the shoulders of all managers sparks another quality that is crucial to "getting the job done"—focus. Because a manager is in charge of several associates and additional responsibilities, it is their job to make sure the company is working like a well-oiled machine. A great manager has to be focused to keep others focused.

Creative

To be a great manager means to have the ability to think outside the box, solve problems—uniquely, and continually come up with great ideas to help the company grow. Especially in today's modern world, creativity is an extremely important quality to distinguish your organization from the competition.

Confident

In order to foster positivity and trust within an organization, a good manager must have confidence. When managers are confident, they embody many of the other qualities that make a great manager.

Confidence isn't something that can be taught but rather a personality trait that great managers naturally have. A well-rounded and confident manager has the innate ability to lead their team forward, successfully.

Optimistic

Not every day can be a great day, but it's important for a manager to be optimistic under any and all circumstances. When optimism is amiss all organizational motivation can decrease. An optimistic work culture can help foster creativity and possibility to help exceed expectations.

Passionate About The Company

When it comes to the best managers, they are not only passionate about their role within the company but passionate about the culture the organization embodies. In addition, they enjoy coming to work every day because they love the people within the organization and the values they stand for.

Validate Your Associate Experience

A Gallup study found that 70 percent of team member's engagement is dependent on the manager. Also, they concluded that "You can have the best employee experience strategy in your industry, but those who have the best bosses have the best experiences". Having the managerial qualities listed above can ensure higher productivity and improvement in your associate experience.

At IntelliShop, our primary focus is improving your customer experience by having the highest standards for quality and integrity in everything we do. Our success comes from consistently treating our Team Members exceptionally well...because as we know, the associate experience helps drive improved customer experiences.

Contact IntelliShop today and see how we can ensure your associate experience aligns with today's standards to improve your customer experience.