Management Myth #4 - Managers are Systematic at All Times

Many people believe that managers have a systematic method for communicating information and getting tasks completed but this, in reality, is very far from the truth. Most managers rely less on set standards and procedures and more on their own intuitions. They’re more artful about the decisions they make than scientific.

Management Myth #5 - Managers are Autonomous

Why people believe managers can do everything on their own is a mystery to me. Sure, they’re really good at managing themselves but they, like everyone else, need input and advice from their own superiors as well. No one is perfect - not even the top CEO in your organisation.

Management Myth #6 - Internal Competition is Productive

Some organisations think that internal competitions, pitting managers against managers, is productive and will boost business. It’s better to cooperate with your peers than it is to work against them. Save the competition for your external competitors.

The life of a manager can be difficult at times. Individuals often assume managers have certain skills that they really don’t and its up to you, as the manager, to correct those assumptions. Are you ready for the challenge?

Thanks again,
Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Management Training

Click below for a:
FREE email course “Improve Your Management Skills”

The first type of person is a “fixer.” Fixers are people who believe they can sort everything out on their own without the help of others. They’re usually self-centered people who just can’t see the big picture.

The second type of mentoring-resistant person is a “bureaucrat”. These people are very controlling and can’t think out of the box. They won’t break the rules and are completely unflexible.

Third on the list are the “pleasers.” These people aren’t great to work with on a mentorship basis because they won’t challenge anyone or confront difficult situations. There is no use trying to teach them anything because they’ll always agree with what you say.

Finally we have the “talkers.” These individuals won’t shut their mouths long enough to build a rapport with anyone - clients or fellow employees. They’re incapable of practicing active listening and, therefore, will never absorb any of the information or wisdom you try to share.

Are you one of the above people? Are you trying to mentor with a personality like one of these? If so, you may need to consider whether or not the mentorship relationship you have is worth your time and effort.

Thanks again,
Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Manager Training

Click below for a:
FREE email course “Improve Your Management Skills”

We, as human beings, tend to be judgemental. As managers, however, we do not have that right. Sadly, many employers choose the individuals they are going to hire based on their genders, ethnicities, cultural backgrounds and, in many cases, ages.

Age is a critical question. In many places employees aren’t even allowed to ask an application about his or her age. They are only allowed to verify that the individual in question is of legal working age. Sadly, many employees look at individuals who appear or admit to being over the age of 55 and hesitate over hiring them.

Today I ask you to sit back and think about the pros and cons associated with hiring someone over the age of 55. For example - those under the age of 55 may not have the same demanding health insurance needs whereas someone over the age of 55 is more likely to be a long-term employee brining vasts amount of knowledge and experience.

Can you make a list of additional pros and cons? Is it ethical to judge a person based on his or her age? If you had two candidates of similar education and experience would you use age as a deciding factor? What is the average age of your workforce right now?

I’m interested in your views and would love to know more about your thought process. Do you descriminate against individuals based on their ages (young or old) and, if so, do you even realize you’re doing it?

Thanks again,
Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Management Course

Click below for a:
FREE email course “Improve Your Management Skills”

• Great team leaders are sensitive. They understand that everyone has didfferent concerns, needs, and interests and they do their best to address these differences.
• Great team leaders have awesome communication and listening skills. They know that everyone has their own set of ideas, plans, and dreams. They listen to everyone and try to find ways to incorporate those interests.
• Great team leaders share their own dreams, plans, and visions with their team members. They aren’t secretive and they refrain from merely working off of other people’s ideas.
• Great team leaders are awesome delegators. They are able to trust their team members and will give those who deserve it a significant amount of responsibility.
• Great team leaders allow their team members to participate in the goal-setting and problem solving processes. They allow everyone to become a part of the process instead of just telling their team members what is going to happen next.
• Great team leaders aren’t perfect and don’t pretend to be. They let their team members know about their own mistakes and use them as learning experiences.

What type of team leader are you? Do you treat your team members fairly and include them in the decision making processes that dictate what they do on a daily basis? Do certain aspects of team leadership work better for you than others? Please share!

Thanks again,
Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Management Courses

Click below for a:
FREE email course “Improve Your Management Skills”

In order to do this there are four main principles of ethical management you need to keep in mind at all times. They are as follows:

• Respect for each employee - While it’s difficult at times, it is important to make sure you treat each of your employees or team members respectfully. Everyone you work with will have different religious and cultural beliefs and should be treated fairly.
• Mutual respect - Your role as a manager involves making sure that your employees all treat each other respectfully as well. While they don’t all have to agree with each other, they should show proper respect for each others ideas and opinions. A team that doesn’t get along on a personal level will not work will together and will be less productive.
• Procedural fairness - You may not have control of the procedures your company expects you to follow but you do have control over the procedures you can implement within your team. It is important to make sure the procedures you implement are fair to all of your employees - neither favoring nor neglecting one employee or another.
• Decision making transparency - It’s incredibly important for you to make sure your employees understand why you make the decisions you do. If they realize you aren’t making arbitrary choices based on personal beliefs they’ll be more likely to accept your decisions and work together as a team.

Are you acting as ethically as possible in the workplace? Are there things you could change so that you and your team get along on a better, professional level? Think about it.

Thanks again,
Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Management Training Course

Click below for a:
FREE email course “Improve Your Management Skills”

Imagine you are preparing to open your own business (selling whatever you wish) in a local shopping mall. Despite having no business experience or contacts in the field, you do have a very strong business plan. Before you can get started you’re going to have to meet with several people. These include:

• The manager of the mall for lease negotiation
• A lawyer to help you form your business
• An accountant to help you learn to handle your finances
• A banker to help you get a small business loan
• An advertising agency to learn how to promote your business
• An interior designer for the inside layout of the store
• A staffing company to help you find employees
• Suppliers, to arrange for credit and inventory

Your job today is to determine in what order you need to meet these people. Remember, if you meet with one person without having met with another one first you may have to have a second meeting. Set your schedule in a way that will minimize duplicating your efforts.

Let me know what you come up with!

Thanks again,
Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Management Training Courses

Click below for a:
Free email course “Improve your Management Skills”

These assumptions couldn’t be further from the truth. While those who find themselves in management positions have usually shown their superiors a certain amount of skill, they’ve also shown their superiors that they have the will and tenacity to learn more. No one takes a management role knowing exactly how everything is done. Today I’m going to share three myths about management.

Management Myth #1: Managers have excellent time management skills.

The truth here is that most managers have great time management skills but those skills are often blown out of proportion. I have, on my occasions, created a daily schedule for myself but my position as a manager does not necessarily allow me the ability to enjoy sticking to that schedule. I am constantly interrupted by my employees, phone calls, emails, and people who truly believe that what they’re working on is more important than what I am working on. At the end of the day I may find I completed 7 out of 10 tasks or, on a bad day, only 1. Time management is relative, especially when managers are responsible for other individuals.

Management Myth #2 - Managers delegate work to others and do nothing else.

I’m not sure who started this myth but I wish it would disappear. It’s usually a disgruntled employee who believes that a manager merely dumps his work on his subordinates and then goes to his office to sip a cup of coffee and read the paper. Good managers delegate tasks - that means they give away parts of a project and keep others for themselves. A true manager is always busy - both delegating tasks, completing his own, and then putting the project back together when all of the parts are complete.

Management Myth #3 - Managers have access to all informational resources.

This is, again, false. Managers ask questions and look for information but in reality their superiors in upper management often have access to additional information that doesn’t trickle down to middle management. As such, you and your team may find that you end up doing extra work that could have been avoided if only someone had given you a piece of information you didn’t even know existed.

Keep these myths in mind as your superiors, peers, and employees question and approach you throughout each day. It’s very likely that they expect you are perfect when, in reality, you’re merely working with the resources you’ve been given.

Thanks again,
Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Management Training

Click below for a:
FREE email course “Improve Your Management Skills”

You have four main roles as a decision maker within your organisation. They are to act as an entrepreneur, to handle disturbances, to allocate resources, and to negotiate.

As an entrepreneur you are responsibel for finding new ideas that will enhance the way your team works. Once you’ve developed the idea you must implement it and continuously review it to ensure your strategies are sound. You’ll need to know when to make changes should they become necessary.

The handling of disturbances within your team or department are also your responsibility. Disturbances may include anything from broken equipment to scheduling conflicts or two team members not getting along. You need to make decisions that will stop or avoid anything that will decrease your team’s productivity.

When your team or department receives new resources they’ll come to you first. It’s your job to decide who needs those resources and allocate them properly. These may include access to training, funding for new equipment, and evens upplies.

Last, but certainly not least, you are a negotiator. You are responsible for working with suppliers, other management members, and your employees to make agreements that will enhance your performance.

Managers are obviously bestowed with a significant amount of authority and if you find yourself in a new management position you’ll have to be careful not to abuse that position. The more skilled you are at using your decision making skills for good the more productive, efficient, and successful your team will be.

Thanks again,
Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Manager Training

Click below for a:
Free email course “Improve your Management Skills”

As a monitor it is your job to keep track of what information is coming in and going out of your organisation. In order to do this you must accept and review information that you receive (whether you asked for it or not) as well as ask the questions needed in order to obtain new information.

The disseminator is responsible for handling and distributing the information he or she has received. This means making sure that subordinates and, in some cases, higher ups receive the information you have gathered - especially if they would not otherwise know about it.

As a spokesperson you may be asked to share information that is pertinent to your particular work group with other work groups within your organisation. In some cases you may be asked to give reports to people who work outside of your organisation. Either way, you’re going to be responsible for the proper transmission of information.

The way you handle information is imperative to the success of not only your own career but your organisation as a whole. Take the time to look at every piece of information you receive and determine whether or not it is really critical and, if it is, make sure it gets shared with the right people as soon as possible!

Thanks again,
Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Management Course

Click below for a:
Free email course “Improve your Management Skills”

As a figurehead within your organisation you are responsible for doing work that some may consider flashy or ceremonial in nature. You do, of course, have dozens of administrative tasks but you’re also in the public and professional spotlight. You have to represent the company at business functions, take out of town business partners out to dinner, and sometimes even attend the private events of your employees.

As a leader you are responsible for making sure your employees are able to work in a safe and productive environment. The growth of your department and your employees rests on your shoulders and you have to be able to foster growth while at the same time avoiding conflict.

As a liason you must be prepared to communicate with others. You’ll not only have to report to upper management but will have to work with peers from other groups within your organisation, vendors, and even clients. The liason is responsible for knowing who to contact to resolve any situation.

It’s no secret that being a manager means you need to have extremely strong communication skills. Your ability to communicate effectively while working with people is paramount to your success.

Thanks again,
Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Management Courses

Click below for a:
Free email course “Improve your Management Skills”