Running a big office or a corporation like a well-oiled machine is still just wishful thinking to many business leaders. Between the challenges of optimizing workflow, managing your team the right way, preserving excellent relations with your clients, and worrying about the company’s future, it’s obvious that the modern-day leader has a lot on their plate.
The key to managing your hectic schedule successfully lies in meticulous organization, and tackling one problem at a time. With that in mind, let’s take a look at some of the top management tips that will help you build a thriving work environment.
Be a leader, and a bit of a boss
Leadership is a tricky subject, and a common pain-point for many managers. The way you handle your employees and your company as a whole will define its fate, so there’s a lot at stake here. From overly-laid back leadership techniques, to being too strict or demanding the impossible from your employees, there are a number of mistakes you can make.
The key here, of course, is to find a balance between being an awesome leader, and being a good boss. As a leader you need to earn respect, not demand it. One of the key signs of being a bad boss, for instance, is demanding everything from your employees without giving them the incentive they need to accomplish the company’s goals. You can still be firm, but it’s about finding the balance between being a leader, and being a boss.
Learn to give and receive criticism in a constructive way
It’s not easy to receive criticism. More often than not, the ego gets in the way of taking home something truly meaningful and constructive from it, and as a result, your relationship with your employees will suffer.
As a good manager, you need to be able to receive criticism, and give it in a constructive way. Always listen to what your team members have to say, and try to derive something meaningful from their words. When giving criticism, do it behind closed doors, and focus on how your employees can improve, instead of concentrating on what they’re doing wrong.
Take the time to get to know your employees
A good leader knows the people they work with. In the modern business world, success is built with the combined efforts of a passionate workforce and an employee collective that cares about the company and wants to see it thrive. If you are to build such a culture in your company, you need to nurture your relationship with your team members.
To achieve this, you will need to learn about the individual, what drives and motivates them. With this information, you will be able to access their true potential, craft their surroundings according to their likes and dislikes, and inspire them to do their damnedest every single day. Now that is how you build a passionate workforce.
Maintain stellar relations with your clientele
While we are on the subject of nurturing your professional relationships, your clients should always be your primary concern. The way you treat them on every level (from communication and development, to invoicing) will define the future of your company.
With that in mind, your no.1 priority should be to optimize every aspect of account management. Take the legal sphere as a prime example. Given the fact that invoicing is always a problem, top business leaders in law firms are focusing on providing flexible payment options in order to maintain and improve client satisfaction. Having a comprehensive legal fees payment plan has become a standard in the legal world in recent years, as giving clients the possibility to pay invoices in a manner that benefits them most is a surefire way to avoid negative feedback, as well as the nasty process of chasing them around when they’re not ready to pay.
Following the same mindset, your focus should be on delivering stellar service and upholding regular communication, but invoicing with discretion, flexibility, and of course, unimpeded efficiency.
Manage a team in an efficient, productive way
It used to be that the prospect of a big fat paycheck at the end of the month was enough to drive employee productivity and motivation through the roof, but those days are long gone. What the millennial employee cares about the most is feeling appreciated for their contribution, like they are a valuable piece of the puzzle. Which they are, you just need to express it on a regular basis.
Focus on boosting confidence within your team by praising them for a job well done, treating them with respect, and incentivizing them with exciting new projects. Keep the proverbial wheel going and never let them feel like they are stuck in a dead-end job. Instead, be an active part of their day and work with them to help them achieve more, to grow, and to thrive.
Make every goal a SMART goal
Every team in every department needs to have goals. These goals aren’t some fictional desires you may or may not turn into reality, they’re SMART goals that you know you can achieve. As one heck of a leader, your duty is to set SMART goals for your employees that are:
- Specific
- Measurable
- Accurate
- Realistic
- Timely
Not only will this boost productivity across the board, but it will also give your team a clear sense of direction. With SMART goals, you will be able to keep everyone on the right course, allowing your employees to push themselves to achieve more.
