Management has always been a demanding and evolving profession. And developing the right management skills is key to a thriving professional ecosystem – not to mention the makings of a great manager.
Whether you’re new to a management position, looking to brush up your skills, or wanting to invest in your team –– this guide can help. We’ll look at practical manager skills and different ways managers can develop in these areas.
What are management skills?
In short, management skills are competencies that help managers better lead, motivate, organize, schedule, plan, budget, and problem-solve. Whether setting team goals that ladder into organizational goals or making a case for a new hire, managers leverage a handful of essential skills to accomplish each aspect of their job.
You can apply management skills to a wide range of careers and industries outside of people management. So many of the skills needed are transferable between these various roles. From middle management to entrepreneurs, management skills are a valuable asset to most professionals
Types of management skills
Though there are many essential skills that managers should develop, they tend to fall into three primary categories:
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Technical skills: Technical skills are the hard skills needed to meet their objectives. As well as understanding relevant tools and software, technical skills also include techniques and strategies required to complete projects and meet their goals.
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Conceptual skills: This big-picture thinking is critical for managers to understand their tasks and build an effective action plan. Managers should be able to develop ideas and problem-solving initiatives that support their department.
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People management skills: People are often the primary drivers of goal-oriented action. Managers should have strong interpersonal skills to help motivate, lead, and work well with others.
What are the top managerial skills to develop?
As you may have gathered, there’s a lengthy list of beneficial hard and soft skills for top managers to embrace. When it comes to adding the most value, however, we can bucket these into four distinct categories:
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Interpersonal skills: learning and growth, teamwork, establishing trust, and cognitive agility
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Problem-solving and decision-making skills: financial planning, business acumen, and customer focus
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Team management and professional development skills: influence, motivation, communication, team building, and coaching
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Organizational skills: strategic thinking, time management skills, sensemaking, or trends and pattern recognition
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Communication and leadership skills: motivating, updating, and collaborating
In addition to these traditional skills, it’s good to remember that managers should constantly learn new skill sets in this rapidly evolving world. These skills include technology savviness, agile management, data-driven decision-making, and purpose-driven leadership.
12 fundamental management skills
The most common management skills that you will want to develop fall under 12 essential functions of management:
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Coordination
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Giving direction
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Leadership
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Organization
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Planning
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Clear communication
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Accountability and ownership
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Coaching
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Time management
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Collaboration
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Active listening
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Problem-solving
Coordination
One key role of managers is to develop functional, cohesive teams. Ideally, these teams work independently, and the manager ensures that they have the resources and skills needed to achieve their goals.
If a team isn’t aware of a resource they need, or another department they should collaborate with, for example, they could struggle to complete their projects.
Giving direction
Directing is likely where most people’s minds go when they think of managers. And it is a vital part of a managerial role. Directing can be in the form of delegating or reviewing work, acting as a form of quality control, or managing timelines.
Good communication is at the core of directing, and emotional intelligence helps develop trust throughout the process.
Leadership
Not all managers are natural leaders, so it’s important for managers to work on their leadership abilities. Influential leaders inspire and motivate others through their behavior. They set the tone for the team, reach out for feedback, acknowledge their team’s efforts, and delegate strategically.
These actions are all vital for influential people and project management.
Organization
As we mentioned, being a manager is a challenging role. Managers are often overseeing multiple projects with varied timelines and deadlines. So having stellar organizational skills helps managers stay efficient, meet deadlines, and reduce stress.
Planning
One significant responsibility of a managerial role is to meet objectives. These can be for a company or at the individual level. Some managers are part of the objective-planning process, and some are not. Either way, a manager must develop a plan to meet these goals. Seeing the bigger picture and how different elements funnel into one another is a helpful skill for managers to hone while planning.
Clear communication
Knowing how to clearly communicate thoughts, plans, feedback, and strategies is an important skill for any management role. Your employees can thrive when they know what is expected of them and how it ties back to overall objectives.
Accountability and ownership
Just as direct reports and individual contributors are held accountable for their work, so are managers. Seeing yourself as an owner of your work and your team’s contributions will go a long way in building trust and integrity across your team.
Coaching
Coaching is a great way to share your knowledge and support your team’s growth. Whether you are coaching them on more technical hard skills, or interpersonal skills, your input builds confidence and intellectual capital.
Time management
It goes without saying that good managers and great leaders know how to manage their time and their energy effectively. It becomes even more important when you couple it with other skills such as giving direction and owning your work. If you understand your limitations and make conscious commitments when taking on more work, your team will thank you for it. You will have a clear head during 1:1 check-ins, be an active participant in meetings, and complete you work more comfortably.
Collaboration
Teamwork and collaboration are the backbone of many organizations. Companies tend to function better when departments step outside of their silos and individuals work together. The same can be said for leaders. It is a leader’s responsibility to facilitate collaborative working environments and to be strong collaborators themselves.
To better develop your communication skills and empathy toward others, be an active listener. “Seek first to understand before being understood.” Active listening means being engaged and acting on what you listen to, not just hearing others. Active listening also creates empathy.
Problem-solving
Most individuals in a leadership role will have to tackle some form of problem-solving. A successful manager can tactfully look at an issue from all sites, garner feedback, and prioritize based on the information they receive. They leverage effective communication skills to learn from their teams and make informed decisions.
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How to develop your management skills
Though there are many ways to develop your skills as a manager, the key is participation. Whether you sign up for a public speaking course or volunteer to lead a new initiative, participating is the first step in improving these essential skills.
Here are some ideas for how to get started and where to put your energy:
Take time to reflect
Before taking a single step forward, pause to consider where you are. You can talk to a friend or family member outside of work, write down your thoughts or simply keep them to yourself. Regardless of your method, reflect on what you’ve accomplished, where you want to go next, and what you see as your biggest hurdles to being a better manager and leader.
Seek out feedback
Once you know where you see yourself and what your long and short-term goals are, you can seek out external feedback. Talk to your manager about your goals and get their input on the skills you can improve upon first as well as what you’re really good at. You may not realize that you are already making strides as a strong communicator, for example. So getting this outside perspective can provide perspective.
Your manager can also help devise a plan of action and help you find ways to work on these management skills. They can also suggest management training if your company offers it.
Volunteer to lead an initiative or project
If you see an opportunity to make an impact, raise your hand and put your ideas forward. Or if you see a chance to improve a process, let your manager or your team know. Showing that you have initiative and are willing to share your ideas is often appreciated. Taking it a step further and practicing your leadership skills by spearheading a project can also be a strong move to show you’re committed to developing these skills.
Find opportunities to coach your peers
This could get tricky, so talk to your manager about the best way to start peer-to-peer coaching within your team. When done well, this is a great way to develop interpersonal skills and flex your technical skills. Perhaps there’s an opportunity for a peer or direct report to support in an area they already have an interest in. You can help them explore a new area while also developing your coaching skills.
Celebrate your peers’ wins
Did a team member go out of their way to contribute to the team’s goals? Or did a coworker pitch in to help your wrap up a project on time? Showing your appreciation for others’ accomplishments and hard work is a great way to develop your management skills.
Tune in and participate in meetings
If you’re in endless hours of meetings, it can be challenging to engage in every one. But try to remain present, listen actively, and pose thoughtful questions when they come up. Staying in the room, so to speak is a stand-out skill –– especially during meeting-heavy days.
Look to mentors and leaders you admire
Think about the leaders, managers, and mentors that motivate and inspire you. Consider their strengths and the ways they present themselves. How do they communicate and share their ideas? What strategies do they use to offer feedback and pushback? Taking note of these things will give you something to aspire to as you develop your management skills.
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