Even the most gifted people can be surprisingly ineffective; They sometimes do not understand that, thanks to abilities alone, it is impossible to achieve any significant success in work.
Intelligence, imagination and awareness are certainly essential qualities, but only in combination with efficiency they will be embodied in results. A system of measurements and assessments - from production organization and accounting to quality control - used in relation to physical labor, is not applicable to intellectual work.
That is why work on necessary the product is a measure of the effectiveness of intellectual work.
A knowledge worker does not need micromanaging. You can only help him. At the same time, he must direct himself to accomplish the assigned tasks, that is, to be effective.
Education is precisely the area in which America is most competitive. Education can be considered the most expensive investment of all those known to us.
The output or productivity of a representative of mental work is expressed in his ability to solve current problems. This is called efficiency.
Activities in which the main driving force are knowledge, not amenable quantitative measurement. This activity cannot be measured by the costs incurred. Intellectual activity is determined by its results.
I call "managers"(“managers”) of those knowledge workers, managers and individual specialists who, due to their position or existing knowledge, must, in the course of their activities, make decisions that have a significant impact on the results of the entire organization.
If managers do not strive for maximum efficiency in their work, they will simply turn into bureaucrats doing their allotted hours.
The main problems on the path of a leader
There are four main problems that are practically beyond the control of the manager. ...each of these problems hinders the achievement of positive results at work.
1. The manager's time does not belong to him. The manager is a prisoner of his organization. Everyone is free to take up his time...
2. Managers are forced to constantly be in the “on” state until will change that reality in which they live and work. If a manager allows himself to go with the flow, then all his efforts will ultimately be wasted on trifles.
To be effective, a manager must have criteria, which will allow him to focus on what is most important - on the contribution to the success of his organization, on the final results. It is possible that these criteria are beyond current affairs.
3. The third circumstance that hinders efficiency is the fact that the manager operates within organizations. This means that this effectiveness is only realized if his plans and decisions are taken advantage of by his colleagues.
4. Finally, the manager acts in within organizations. For a manager, the most visible situation is within the organization where he works. He is most concerned about the state of affairs in her. Here all its aspects and details are revealed to him.
If the manager does not make special effort in order to be closer to life taking place outside the walls of his institution, he is increasingly closes on the activities of this institution. The higher such a manager climbs the career ladder, the more attention he pays internal problems to the detriment of the analysis of the surrounding reality.
Law of Organizational Growth
Organization as social phenomenon different from biological organism. However, it is subject to the same law that regulates the structure and size of animals and plants.
According to this law, as size increases, the surface of the habitat increases in a quadratic proportion, and the mass in a cubic proportion.
As the organization grows and its visible achievements grow, more and more of the manager's attention, energy, and abilities are directed toward internal events to the detriment of accomplishing his tasks and achieving real effectiveness for the outside world.
Current external events often worn qualitative character and are not quantifiable. They cannot yet be called “facts.” After all, facts include those events that someone has already defined, classified and, above all, endowed with relevance. …it’s not the trends themselves that are important, but their changes.
One of weak points modern education is that young people are limited to knowledge in one narrow area and treat everyone else with disdain. Each of them should have an idea of the meaning and tasks of those disciplines that are not directly related to them.
The concept of an “effective personality” is simple doesn't exist. The effective managers I met differed strikingly from each other in ability, temperament, what and how they did, personal qualities, knowledge and interests.
In other words, they differed from each other in everything that defines a person's personality. One thing united them important property– they achieved important and urgent tasks.
Efficiency is something like a habit, a set practical methods which can always be learned.
Five Basic Elements to Improve Worker Efficiency in Management
1. Effective managers must know where they are spending their money. time. Managing your time is a critical element of being productive.
2. Effective managers must focus on achievements that extend beyond their organizations. They should be focused not on doing the work as such, but on end result.
A good manager, before starting any task, asks himself the question: “What results should I achieve?” The process of work itself and its methods fade into the background for him.
3. Effective managers must base their activities on strong qualities both their own and their managers, colleagues and subordinates, and are also obliged to look for positive aspects in specific situations.
4. Effective managers focus their attention on a few the most important areas, in which the implementation of assigned tasks will bring the most tangible results. They must learn to install priority areas work and not deviate from them. Actually, all their activities should consist of performing exactly priority tasks.
5. Finally, effective managers must accept effective solutions. And this, first of all, is a question of consistency, that is, the process of completing a task must take place in the required sequence.
It must be remembered that an effective decision is always a judgment based on “divergence of opinion” rather than “agreement on facts.” Excessive haste leads to making wrong decisions. There should be few solutions, but they should all be fundamental. When making decisions, you need to be guided by the right strategy, and not by short-term tactical considerations.
These five elements of managerial effectiveness are main theme this book.
Chapter 2: Know your time
According to my observations, experienced managers do not immediately rush to solve their problems. They start by analyzing their time rather than planning - they first think about how to allocate their time.
They then try to control time, the most important element of which is reducing overhead costs. Finally, they reduce their “personal” time into the largest and most interconnected blocks possible. Thus, this process consists of three components:
- time registration,
- time management,
- consolidation of time.
Experienced managers know that time is limited. The performance limits of any process are set by the scarcest resource. In the process we call “getting things done,” that resource is time.
Time is completely irreplaceable. Within certain limits, we can always substitute one resource for another, such as aluminum for copper. We can replace human labor with capital. We can use more knowledge, put intelligence into action more intensively. But we cannot replace time with anything.
Nothing is more characteristic of effective managers than their reverent caring about time.
Although humans, like all living beings, are equipped with a “biological clock,” they lack a reliable sense of time. If we rely on our memory, we don't notice how our time is being spent. Knowledge workers, and especially managers, must learn to manage their time enlarged blocks.
Communication with subordinates takes up the most time. Those managers who think they can discuss the plans, directions and performance of their subordinates within fifteen minutes are simply deceiving themselves.
In order to achieve real achievements, the employee engaged in mental activity, must be focused on the performance of his organization as a whole. In other words, he must strive to achieve results with which his organization enters the outside world.
In order for knowledge workers to successfully advance the business, leaders of modern organizations must allocate a significant part of the time to meet with them and discuss all problems. Sometimes such meetings take place even with junior staff.
Typically, managers ask the following questions: “What do you need to know about your job? Do you have any original suggestions regarding our organization? What existing reserves can be put into action? Do you foresee any undesirable turns of events that no one but you can foresee? What would you like to know from me regarding our organization?
Without such discussions, employees lose enthusiasm and turn into time-wasters, or direct their efforts into a narrow area of interest that is not related to the needs of the organization.
At the same time, such mini-symposiums require a huge investment of time, especially since they must be conducted in a leisurely and in a calm manner. People must believe that they “have any amount of time.” Ultimately, this contributes to the speedy achievement of success.
At the same time, this speaks to the need time consolidation manager, since intermittency slows down the process of completing work.
The more people work in an organization, the more often personnel decisions have to be made. But hasty decisions are most often wrong. They require elaboration and, therefore, a lot of time.
Before making the optimal decision, it is often necessary to consider the issue from different points of view. According to popular belief, Alfred P. Sloan, the former head of the world's largest company, never made decisions on personnel issues the first time.
When asked about his secrets, he answered: “I don’t have any secrets - I just proceed from the fact that the first option in deciding to appoint or promote someone will most likely be wrong, and therefore I go through the whole reasoning process again.” several times before the decision is carried out.”
Recording the actual expenditure of time can be considered the first step towards increasing the efficiency of managerial work. Systematized time management can be considered the next stage in increasing the manager’s performance.
First of all, areas of waste of time should be identified in order to eliminate them. During this process, it is recommended to answer a number of diagnostic questions.
- Identify and eliminate those activities that do not bring any results but take up time.
- Next, decide which activity someone else can perform with equal (or perhaps greater) success?
- How does a leader treat the time of others that he himself spends? Experienced managers have developed the habit of asking the question: “What am I doing that is wasting people’s time and not making them more effective?”
Lost time as a result of poor management and improper work organization:
1. It is necessary to identify areas of unproductive waste of time because of lack of system or foresight. “Crises” in work that repeat from year to year serve as a good signal for taking action.
Today's routine is a systematized and ordered form of what was learned and mastered by gifted people in the process of overcoming crises. Repeated crises are nothing more than symptoms of negligence and laziness.
Every well-run organization is monotonous and “boring” in its own way. Drama in such organizations manifests itself in fundamental decisions shaping the future, and not in heroic efforts aimed at eliminating pre-created difficulties.
2. Overstaffed waste of time. I remember arithmetic problems from first grade.
If senior team leaders (naturally, primarily managers) spend, say, more than 1/10 of their working time on “problems of human relations,” on resolving all sorts of tensions and conflicts, resolving legal disagreements and similar issues, then this almost certainly means that this group of workers too big.
3. Improper organization of work is another factor in wasting time. Its symptom is an incredible amount meetings and conferences.
Meetings need to be more focused. They should be the exception, not the rule.
Chapter 3. Individual contribution to the overall activity
The thoughts of effective managers go beyond their formal responsibilities and are aimed at broader goals. They seem to constantly ask themselves the question: “How can I have a significant impact on the effectiveness of my institution?”
Such managers are constantly feel responsible for achieving the set goals.
Most managers are characterized by a “downward” trend in their activities. First of all, they are concerned about increasing their own authority. Ultimately, this orientation makes managers ineffective.
When I began diagnosing organizations, I asked leaders, “What exactly are you doing to justify the salary you are paid?” In most cases, the following answers followed: “I am in charge of the accounting department” or “I am responsible for the employees involved in the sale of products.” A very common answer is: “850 people work under me.”
But there are very few who answer as follows: “My job is to provide department managers with the information they need to make the right decisions,” or “I try to figure out what type of product will be in demand in the near future,” or “I I think through and prepare decisions that will then be considered by the president.”
Concentration on contribution to the common cause diverts the manager's attention from his specialty, narrow qualifications and his department. In other words, he focuses on functioning of the whole.
His attention is drawn to the results of the entire organization. It is common for him to analyze the question of what contribution his qualifications, specialty, functions and his department can make to the organization as a whole and to the implementation of its tasks.
Ask yourself questions like, “How can I help my organization?” - this means starting to look for unused reserves in your workplace. As we know, quite often, much of what is traditionally perceived as exemplary performance is in fact only a pale shadow of what can be achieved in a given workplace.
Any organization tries to achieve success in three directions:
- achieving direct results,
- articulating and maintaining values,
- training of future personnel.
It is in these areas that every manager should make a specific contribution.
An organization that only consolidates its current level of achievements loses its ability to to adaptation. In the life of society, only changes are constant, and therefore such an organization will not be able to survive in tomorrow's conditions.
The most common reason for a manager's failure lies in his inability or unwillingness to change due to the demands imposed on him by his new position.
A manager who continues to do what he was able to do successfully in his old place is almost doomed to failure.
The higher the position a manager occupies, the greater the role played by the external (in relation to his specific organization) environment as a factor in achieving the goal.
The most important - don't create generalists, jacks of all trades. It is very important to create conditions under which a specialist is able to increase the efficiency of both his own and his specialty.
This means that he must identify in advance the user of the products of his work, as well as determine his needs for the knowledge and skills that will help him master them productively. Professionals who take responsibility for their contributions will try to relate them to a coherent whole.
If managers manage to establish good relationship in their organizations, it is not because they have a “talent for dealing with people.” This can be explained by the fact that in their work and relationships with others they are aimed at contributing to the common cause.
Focusing on contribution presupposes four main conditions for effective relationships:
Communication,
- collective activity,
- self-development and
- development of others.
Communication
Why do enormous efforts aimed at achieving adequate communication fail to produce results? Traditionally, communication relationships were built in a descending manner, that is, from management to subordinates.
The more diligently a boss tries to bring something to the attention of his subordinate, the greater the likelihood that the latter will perceive it in a distorted form. In other words, he will hear what he wants to hear, and not what he was actually told.
Managers who take responsibility for achieving the set goal in their own work, as a rule, require a responsible attitude towards her and from their subordinates.
They seem to constantly turn to their employees with questions: “For what results are you responsible to me, your boss, and the entire organization as a whole?”, “How can you use your knowledge and abilities with the greatest efficiency?”
In this case, communication becomes not only possible, but also effective. The goals that subordinates set for themselves almost never meet the needs of the manager. Subordinates see reality with completely different eyes.
The more abilities they have, the more responsibility they are willing to take on, the more their perception of reality, its capabilities and needs differs from the opinion of their leader or organization.
Teamwork
Focus on contribution leads to the emergence of communication diversity and makes collective work possible. A question like “Who should use the results of my work in order to make them effective?” immediately reveals the importance of a person in a team, regardless of whether he belongs to the management team or an ordinary employee.
Self-development
Self-development depends largely on focusing on contribution to the common good. A person who asks himself a question like “What is the most important contribution I can make to this organization?” is actually asking the following: “In what direction should I develop?”, “What knowledge and skills do I need to acquire in order to be able to make this contribution?”, “How much effort will I need?”, “What parameters should I set for myself?”
Effective Meeting
Effective managers ask themselves: “Why are we holding this meeting?” “Do we want to make a decision, make a message, or find out the direction of our activities?”
You can lead a meeting and listen to what is being said, or take part and speak yourself, but you cannot combine these two principles! However, focusing on a specific goal, on contribution from the very beginning, is key rule. Focus on contribution and achievement is the path to effectiveness.
Chapter 4. Bet on strengths
An effective leader does everything to increase the impact of the organization's strengths everywhere and in everything. He knows that one cannot rely on weaknesses. Do strengths to be as productive as possible is the true goal of any organization.
Of course, it is impossible to overcome all the weaknesses that everyone invariably has. But we have the power to make them insignificant.
Selecting employees based on their strengths
When making personnel decisions, the manager focuses on presence of advantages, and not on the absence of shortcomings among employees. A manager who promotes employees or staffs positions, focusing only on the weaknesses of people, in best case scenario will get the most mediocre results.
U strong people there are always quite noticeable weaknesses
Experienced managers know that their subordinates are paid not to please their superiors, but to complete assigned tasks.
A skillful manager will never ask: “Are we going to get along with this employee?” But he will certainly think: “What contribution can be expected from this employee?” He will also never ask, “What can’t this worker do?” His question will be: “How can this employee excel?”
In other words, when selecting personnel, experienced managers focus on the applicants' high performance in one important area, and not on their overall performance. If you think this is obvious, why are so few managers able to make best use of the strengths of others, especially their colleagues?
The main reason lies in the fact that the manager's immediate task is to fill the vacancy, and not to select the person most capable of performing the job.
Traditionally, they always start with an existing workplace, then look for a person to fill it. Acting in this way, you can come to the false principle of searching for the “most flexible” employee, a person who does not pretend to anything. Observations show that such people, as a rule, find themselves mediocrity.
Positions must be objective, that is, they must be determined by the task, not by the individual. You can’t change everyone’s jobs and responsibilities just because for some reason workplace came new person. Tailoring positions to a person unmistakably leads to a system favorites and conformity.
Managers who create excellent production teams usually do not have close relationships with their closest colleagues and subordinates. By selecting employees based on their abilities rather than on personal likes or dislikes, such managers are focused on achieving high performance rather than universal consensus. To ensure results they keep their distance between themselves and their closest colleagues.
4 rules when selecting a person for a position
Effective managers select employees based on their strengths, without tailoring jobs to personality traits. To do this they follow four rules.
1. They should not believe that jobs and positions are created by nature itself or by the Lord God. They are the work of man with all his inherent shortcomings. Effective managers will always be wary of “impossible” jobs that are beyond the capabilities of a normal person.
The rule is quite simple: any work that turns out to be too much for several performers (and those who have distinguished themselves at the very best in their previous positions) should be considered unsuitable for everyone.
2. The second rule for selecting employees based on their strengths is to assign responsibility to each position and be demanding of the employee. If work tasks are too "small", this does not give manifest best sides employees.
A young specialist should ask himself as early as possible: “Will I be able to demonstrate everything that I am capable of in this organization and in this area of work?” But he will not be able to ask himself this question, let alone answer it, if the work with which he began his activity is too limited, uncomplicated and structured to somehow compensate for the lack of experience, instead of revealing all its possibilities.
Many managers often complain that the zeal of young professionals dries up very quickly. However, such managers only have themselves to blame: they extinguished the youthful ardor of young employees by assigning them to do tedious and unimportant work.
3. Effective managers know that they need to start working with people by revealing and correctly using their potential, and not by issuing instructions to carry out standard duties. It is for this reason that systems have become so widespread certifications and knowledge assessments specialists.
If a manager, following the recommendations of our evaluation system, proceeds from the shortcomings of his subordinates, this will ruin the relationship between them. Finding and emphasizing shortcomings makes further working together almost impossible. It is therefore not surprising that very few managers prefer to use the existing rating system.
The use of this erroneous tool leads to undesirable situations, as it pursues decoys. Only labor efficiency should be measured.
Experienced managers usually develop their own forms estimates that differ sharply from those officially proposed. Typically, such forms begin by listing the performance results that were expected of employees in their previous and current positions. Records of their actual achievements are also given.
This is followed by four questions:
- What is this employee good at doing?
- Given his previous achievements, what functions can he successfully perform?
- What should he learn to fully develop his abilities?
- Would I want my children to work under him?
- If so, why?
- If not, why not?
4. Effective managers know that to use strengths productively it is often necessary to put up with weaknesses. Experienced managers know that two people with mediocre abilities cannot achieve the same results as one talented specialist.
There are only three explanations for the “indispensability” of an employee:
- He is truly incompetent and can only survive due to his lack of specific responsibility.
- His strong qualities are used only to support his weaker boss, who is not able to make independent decisions.
- His strengths are used to delay the solution of serious problems or to hide their existence.
An indispensable condition promotion of a person is his proven ability to effectively perform the functions required by the position. All other arguments, such as “he is irreplaceable...”, “he will not find a common language with the established team...”, “he is very young...”, “we never appoint people to such positions who do not have experience in our field”, are not must be taken into account.
It's not just that every job requires the best performer. An employee whose functional merits have been proven should be given opportunities to reach his or her potential.
Focusing on opportunities rather than problems in HR issues creates an effective organization and an atmosphere of passion and commitment.
On the other hand, it is the manager's responsibility to immediately remove from employment anyone who fails to consistently perform well. Allowing such people to remain in their positions means corrupting others. This is grossly unfair to the entire organization.
How to manage your boss
First of all, we must try to use his strengths productively. There is nothing better for achieving success than a successful boss quickly moving up the career ladder.
Anyone who has ever looked a little more closely at their surroundings has made the completely obvious conclusion that all people are divided into “readers” and “listeners.”
Increasing your own efficiency
Effective managers are concerned about their limitations, but they are able to discover a great variety of things that they can accomplish. While others complain that they can't do one thing or another, effective leaders prefer not to waste time and do what they do best.
An effective leader does not hide his weaknesses; he tries to be himself.
In the sphere of human relations, the distance between leaders and middle peasants is a constant value. The high level of performance of leaders forces the middle peasants to catch up.
Chapter 5. Everything has its time
The “secret” of efficiency lies in concentration and purposefulness. Effective managers always start by solving primary tasks and at the same time do everything sequentially, that is, one thing at a time.
Before concentrating forces in one direction, effective managers try get rid of the past which has ceased to be productive. They periodically review the programs of their activities and the activities of their colleagues, asking the question: “If we have not done this before, is it worth doing it now?”
If the answer is negative, then they reduce or even stop work in this direction. At the very least, managers are trying to avoid investing additional resources in already unproductive areas.
Yesterday's actions and decisions, no matter how brave and wise they were, inevitably turn into today's problems, crises and misunderstandings. At the same time, the successes of the past outlive their usefulness for a long time.
An even greater danger is posed by activities that, despite all their promise, didn't bring it desired results . They sometimes “warm the boss’s pride” and are therefore inviolable.
A manager who wants to be effective himself and make his organization effective must carefully monitor all programs, all areas of activity, all tasks. He must constantly ask himself: “ Is it worth the effort?»
The most effective means of supporting something new are the people themselves who have proven their effectiveness. They are always busier than they should be. To successfully solve new problems, the most valuable personnel should be freed from all unnecessary things. New employees are recruited to develop and promote existing activities.
You should start something new together with people whose qualities are beyond doubt, that is, with those who have extensive experience working in this organization.
Systematic getting rid of the old is the only means of introducing something new. There is no shortage of ideas in any organization I know. We do not experience problems associated with “creative thoughts.”
But only a very small proportion of organizations can translate their worthy ideas into something practical. Everyone is too busy solving yesterday's problems.
Priorities
It is very important to determine which tasks must be solved first, and which ones are left for “later”, as being of less importance. If circumstances, and not the manager, make the decision, then the tasks will most likely remain unsolved. Because in this case there will not be time to implement the most difficult of them.
Circumstances always prefer yesterday. Due to circumstances, managers will not pay attention to what is being done outside the organization. Circumstances always tend to manifest themselves most clearly within an organization. They always choose what has already happened rather than the future; crisis, not opportunity...
It is courage, not analysis, that dictates the truly important rules for determining priorities:
- Focus on the future, not the past.
- Focus on opportunities, not problems.
- Choose your own direction, don't go with the flow with others.
- Set high goals for yourself that allow you to make a drastic difference in the situation, and not ones that are “reliable” and easily achievable.
In business, success is achieved not by those companies that strive to develop new types of products on an existing organizational and technical basis, but by those that are aimed at introducing new technologies and types of production.
In general, introducing something new in a limited area involves the same risk, complexity, and uncertainty as if it were introduced over a larger area.
Chapter 6. Elements of Decision Making
An effective leader is a leader who makes effective decisions. Effective managers do not strive to make many decisions. They only focus on the most important.
They try to accept those few important decisions that are at the highest level conceptual understanding. Effective managers know when decisions should be based on principles and when they should be made pragmatically based on the merits of the circumstances.
They know that the hardest thing is the choice the right compromise, and therefore strive to learn to distinguish a necessary compromise from an unnecessary one. They also know that the most time-consuming part is not making the decision itself, but putting it into practice. Until it comes into reality, it remains a good wish.
Examples of Conceptual Decision Making Theodore Vail(Bell Telephone System) and Alfred P. Sloan(General Motors).
The entire process of making an effective decision breaks down into elements:
1. The first question a manager who wants to make an effective decision must ask is: “Is this a typical situation or is it an exception to the rule?”
Four types of events can be distinguished. First, there are truly typical events, and individual cases serve as symptoms here. Secondly, there are problems that, being specific to individual companies, are general character. Then there are the truly exceptional, truly unique problems.
Indeed, unique events occur quite rarely. When such an event occurs, the question to ask is, “Is this truly an exception or simply the manifestation of something new?”
The initial manifestation of a new typical problem is the fourth and last category events that have to be dealt with in the decision-making process. All events, with the exception of truly unique ones, require fundamental decisions. They must be viewed through the lens of rule, policy and principle.
Truly unique events, however, require a highly individual approach. There are no rules for exceptions. A manager faced with the task of developing an effective solution in his organization must first determine which of the above four situations he is dealing with.
An experienced manager knows that the classification of the situation leads to making the wrong decision. The most common mistake is to treat a typical situation as a series of unique events, that is, a manifestation of pragmatism in the absence of a principle and a concept of the typical.
Another fairly common mistake is to treat a new event as a manifestation of an old problem to which the old rules apply.
An experienced manager assumes that the problem is typical. He also admits that the event that attracted his attention is in fact symptom. He always tries to identify the essence of the problem and does not stop at treating just the symptom.
This also explains why an experienced responsible employee always strives to resolve issues at the highest possible level. conceptual level. “If there are many laws in a country, this indicates the incompetence of lawyers.” In such a country, they try to solve each problem as a unique phenomenon, and not as a special case falling under general norms.
Likewise, a manager who makes too many decisions is likely to be lazy and ineffective.
2. The second important element in the decision-making process is to clearly define what we want to achieve with this decision. What are the goals of our decisions? Do we set ourselves some minimum tasks? What conditions must our solutions satisfy?
In science, these conditions are known as “borderline”. In order for a solution to be effective, it must satisfy the boundary conditions and be adequate to the goal.
Anyone can make a bad decision, and everyone makes bad decisions from time to time. But we should all be wary of solutions that do not satisfy boundary conditions.
3. We must start not with what seems acceptable, but with what seems correct.
This position is based on the fact that at the final stage of each action the need for compromise usually arises. But if there is a vague understanding of the conditions that need to be satisfied, it becomes impossible to distinguish the right compromise from the wrong one. It often ends up choosing the latter.
Alfred Sloan:“...people won't be able to choose the right compromise unless you first explain to them what is essentially 'right.' You should not waste time thinking about what is acceptable and what should not be said, so as not to cause resistance. ... we gain nothing if we start with the question: “What is permissible?” By answering this question, we may miss what is most important and lose the opportunity to find an effective (not to mention correct) answer.
4. Decision implementation is the fourth major element of the decision-making process. While the analysis of boundary conditions is the most difficult step in the decision-making process, turning it into effective action requires a lot of time.
No solution can be effective unless implementation capabilities are built into it from the very beginning.
When implementing a solution, several specific questions need to be answered: “Who should know about this solution? What action needs to be taken? Who should take this action? What should this action be so that the people responsible for it can implement it?” In practice, the first one is often neglected and last questions, which leads to disastrous results.
If behavior that is contrary to that required to solve new problems is rewarded, then it is quite possible to conclude that such behavior is welcomed by higher management.
5. Every responsible decision must be ensured feedback to check the correspondence between theory and practice. After all, even the most effective solutions eventually become outdated.
The military has long learned one simple thing - without checking the execution of orders, most of them remain unfulfilled. Military leaders know that the most reliable test is their own eyes. The usual review tools that presidents use—reports and reports—are not reliable means of feedback.
Personal verification It is also the best, if not the only, method for assessing the relevance of the assumptions underlying a decision. If the audit reveals their inconsistency with new realities, they should be revised.
It's no secret that any packages sooner or later become outdated. Reality is also a variable factor.
Chapter 7. Effective solutions
The solution is judgment. It's a choice between right and wrong. At best, a decision is a choice between “almost right” and “probably wrong,” but more often a decision is a choice between two courses of action that cannot be proven correct.
Most books that describe the decision-making process say that “you start by finding the facts.” But experienced managers know that they need to start with something else - with opinions.
In order to determine what is also a “fact”, it is necessary to find out relevance criteria. An effective decision does not follow from agreement on the facts. It originates in a clash of different opinions, as well as in a serious analysis of possible alternatives.
The only accurate method that encourages us to test opinions with reality is based on the clear conviction that everything begins with opinions. We know what to do with hypotheses - there is no need to doubt them, they need to be tested.
Perhaps the main idea should be expressed in the question: “What is the criterion of relevance?” The manager always proceeds from the fact that traditional measurements are not always what is needed. Indeed, if traditional measures remained valid, then there would be no need to make decisions - partial adjustment or adjustment would be enough.
Traditional measurements inherently reflect yesterday's decisions. If it becomes necessary to make a new decision, this first of all means that the measurement has lost its relevance.
Most effective method Finding an acceptable measurement is personal participation in “feedback”, but this communication must be carried out before making a decision. Effective managers always strive to secure measurement alternatives, in order to choose one that is most suitable.
Our vision of reality narrows if we have no alternatives. This is primarily why most experienced leaders throw out the second fundamental commandment found in decision-making textbooks and seek to create an environment of controversy rather than unanimity.
The first rule of decision making may sound like this: “If there is no preliminary disagreement, it is impossible to develop an optimal solution.”
There are three main points that speak in favor of making a decision in the face of objections and counterarguments:
First, only in this way can the decision maker avoid the fate of being a prisoner of his organization. Everyone in the organization is trying to impose their opinion on him. Everyone strives to make sure that exactly the decision that he considers necessary is passed. Second, only disagreement can provide alternatives to the proposed solution. Above all, controversy is necessary to stimulate the imagination.
It should be assumed that the person who made a seemingly clearly incorrect judgment sees reality in a different light and seeks to solve a different problem. An effective manager will always ask, “What is this employee trying to achieve if he believes his position is reliable, rational and reasonable?”
Only by delving into the available options for judgment will he think about who is right and who is wrong. Unfortunately, most people traditionally take as their starting point their vision of things as the only possible.
A manager who wants to make an effective decision asks: “Is this decision really necessary?”
One alternative is always at your disposal - do nothing. But often you have to make a decision only because inaction can only make the situation worse.
The same applies to favorable opportunities. An opportunity appears only for a limited time, and if it is not taken advantage of, it will disappear. In such cases, action is necessary, and this most often leads to radical changes.
If the question “What happens if you do nothing?” If you can answer that “everything will work out by itself,” then no intervention is required. You should not interfere in cases where the conditions are not of any importance and do not significantly affect the course of events.
Roman law, written almost two thousand years ago, says: De minimis non curat praetor - The praetor does not bother with trifles. Many people in charge are still unaware of this saying.
I recommend comparative analysis the risk associated with action, with the possible risk of inaction. There is no formula for the correct solution here. But there are clear guidelines that facilitate decision-making in specific cases:
- Proceed if, all things considered, the benefits would significantly outweigh the costs and risks.
- One can act or not act; but do not shirk or limit yourself to half-hearted solutions.
Let's assume that everything is ready to make a decision. It is at this stage that most decisions are rejected. Suddenly it turns out that it may be unpleasant, unpopular or difficult.
Decisions by their very nature should not cause unpleasant emotions, however, most effective decisions leave an unpleasant aftertaste at first.
It is safe to say what an effective leader will not do at this stage. He will not give in to temptation and will not demand another study this issue. He will not allow busy people to waste their time just to compensate for his own indecisiveness.
The fact that the right decision is associated with some negative aspects is, in principle, not a reason to abandon it. But unconscious worry or internal anxiety always acts as limiters, even if short time. As one of my acquaintances, who knows how to make the most optimal decisions, says: “I always stop if I don’t clearly see the situation.”
Efficiency can be learned, but it cannot be taught.
Efficiency is not a “subject”, but self-discipline!
I want to become a manager. What do I understand by this word, how do I imagine my work in this position?
A manager is a leader, a person who makes decisions, organizes their implementation and is responsible for their results.
A manager must be able to correctly plan activities, that is, determine how to most effectively use available material, time and human resources to complete assigned tasks.
To make the right decisions, a manager must have deep professional knowledge, the ability to think logically, and the ability to predict the results of certain actions. It is important to constantly improve, since in all areas of human activity progress does not stand still.
At the same time, the deepest knowledge will not give a positive effect if applied haphazardly. The manager must clearly understand what tasks he faces in the short and long term. It is also important that he understands why he chose this job in the first place, what his main goal is.
Many famous managers, such as K. Matsushita, G. Ford and others believed that the main goal of any enterprise is the benefit of society. Only by moving towards this goal can you build a solid foundation for personal well-being. Following this principle, they achieved brilliant results, and this is the best confirmation that their attitude to business is worth emulating.
I think the most important thing about being a manager is the ability to work with people. After all, usually the manager’s plans have to be implemented by other employees. It is obvious that they must be unanimous in their aspirations, must carry out the part of the work entrusted to them conscientiously, efficiently, sharing a sense of the correctness of what they are doing. Only by creating a friendly, creative atmosphere in your team, giving each of the subordinates the opportunity to realize themselves and show their best qualities and at the same time – ensuring strict compliance labor discipline, the manager will be able to ensure the best execution of any tasks.
Obviously, it is impossible to immediately reach heights. However, what seems to me to be a correct understanding of the purpose of a manager allows me to hope for successful growth and solving the most difficult problems in this field.
Ministry education and science of the Russian Federation State Educational Institution of Higher Professional Education Saratov State Socio-Economic University leader team influence requirement at the rate " Strategic management"on the topic: "The image of a modern leader" Completed: FES student 5 k., 4 gr. Fedorova I.M. Saratov 2011 Subject of this essay: “The image of a modern leader.” I decided to consider this particular topic, since in today's Russia, indeed, there is a shortage of competent, qualified and meeting modern requirements, personnel, including managers - this is a problem that needs to be solved as quickly as possible, because. on modern stage business development, the role of the manager has come to the fore, and it is this that determines how the entire business will function. A person who wants to survive modern world, in my opinion, should be successful. What does it take to be a good, successful leader, carrying a huge load and responsibility on your shoulders? It seems to me that the main thing is to look forward and see the goal, make the right decisions, act correctly and certainly complete the task with success, victory. Successful directors set high internal performance standards. They have high expectations for their students and staff; they communicate these expectations to people inside and outside their school. In my opinion, the main qualities that a good leader should have are the following: Competence. Communication skills. Attentive attitude towards subordinates. Courage in decision making. Ability to solve problems creatively. The last one, I think, is the most important. a good leader is creative personality, capable of overcoming stereotypes and finding unconventional ways to solve the problems facing the school, creating and using innovative management technologies. a good leader is a person who constantly works on himself, on his professional and personal qualities. a good leader is a strategist who sees the prospects for the development of his organization for several years ahead, based on existing social conditions and resources. a good leader is a carrier of organizational change, developing new approaches to solving problems, promoting new values among employees, obsessed with an idea, and ready to overcome long-term difficulties in order to bring it to life. a good leader is a leader who strives not to order, but to listen to colleagues, who is psychologically inclined to approve proposals, who is an enthusiast and prepares and supports enthusiasts. a good leader is a person who integrates the efforts of employees into the widespread use of cultural and ethnic management tools. In addition, a modern school director must also have the traits of a manager-leader: Available to any employee. The tone of discussion of any problems is always friendly. Understands that managing means doing things with the hands of others. Hence, he devotes most of his time to working with personnel, constantly paying attention to reward systems. He personally knows a significant part of the workers. Opponent of the office management style, prefers to discuss problems locally, knows how to hear and listen, is decisive and persistent. Tolerant of expressions of open disagreement, skillfully delegates authority to performers, and builds relationships on trust. In difficult moments, he does not strive to find the culprit, but looks for the cause of failures and deviations. He does not command or command, but convinces; strict control is replaced by trust. Strives to develop collective forms of work as a single team. Always open to new ideas, creates an atmosphere in which free expression of ideas becomes the norm. Forms a good psychological climate in the team, does not satisfy the interests of some workers at the expense of others. Readily, and most importantly, publicly recognizes the merits of employees. Doesn't imitate change, but actually strives to make positive changes. This is what, in my opinion, a good leader should be. Leadership is the art of influencing people, inspiring them to willingly strive to achieve certain goals. Very often, unfortunately, especially in politics, these turn out to be the personal ambitious goals of the leader himself. People follow a leader primarily because he is able to offer them (although not always actually give) the means to satisfy their most important needs and indicate the desired direction of activity. The leader’s power is based on good knowledge of his subordinates, the ability to put himself in their place, analyze the situation, determine the immediate and long-term consequences of his actions, the desire for self-improvement, the ability to instill confidence in his subordinates, the awareness of the need to perform certain actions, because the behavior of employees most often reflects what is expected of them. The leader perfectly feels and understands the psychological characteristics of partners, opponents, and superiors, and skillfully uses them in official and informal contacts. Convincing others, he shows enviable flexibility and the ability to compromise. But the true source of a leader’s power over people is his independence, his readiness to vacate his position at any time, since expressing the interests of the collective does not at all mean submission to it. A manager must be a leader worthy of emulation. We need to stop here and tell you in more detail. The main task of a manager is to get things done with the help of other people, to achieve teamwork. This means cooperation, not intimidation. A good manager always cares about the interests of the entire company. He strives to balance the interests of the group, the interests boss and other managers, the need to get the job done with the need to find time for training, production interests with the human needs of subordinates. How to become a leader Leadership cannot be defined by any formula. This is art, skill, skill, talent. Some people have it naturally. Others are learning this. And still others never comprehend this. In the end, everyone finds their own style. One is dynamic, charming, able to inspire others. The other is calm, restrained in speech and behavior. However, both of them can act with equal effectiveness - instill confidence in themselves and ensure that the work is completed quickly and efficiently. But some characteristic features, are still inherent in leaders of different styles. The leader is devoted to his company, he does not humiliate his company in the eyes of employees and does not humiliate his employees in the eyes of the company's management. A leader must be an optimist. An optimist is always willing to listen to others and their ideas because he is always waiting for good news. A pessimist listens as little as possible because he expects bad news. An optimist thinks that people are mostly ready to help, have creativity, strive for creation. A pessimist believes that they are lazy, obstinate and of little use. Interestingly, both approaches usually turn out to be correct. A leader loves people. If a manager's job is to manage people, how can he do it well if he doesn't like people. The best leaders care about their employees. They are interested in what others are doing. A good leader is accessible and does not hide behind an office door. The best leaders are humane, they are aware of their own weaknesses, which makes them more tolerant of the weaknesses of others. A leader must be courageous. He will always try to find new way complete a task just because this way is better. But he never makes it unreasonable. If he allows someone to conduct an experiment and it ends in failure, he will not blame him or lose faith in him. A leader is open-minded. He will never say: It's none of my business . If you expect your group of employees to jump into action when unusual situations arise, you need to demonstrate to them that you are ready to take on new tasks when asked. The leader takes great interest in all aspects of the company's activities. A leader must be decisive. A leader is always ready to make decisions. When you have all the necessary information, then the right decision always lies on the surface. It is more difficult when not all the initial data are known, but a decision still needs to be made. It takes real courage to make a decision while recognizing that it may be wrong. The leader is tactful and attentive. The basic principle is to criticize the work, not the person doing it. One wise man said that every critical remark should be packaged like a sandwich - between two slices of praise. Fairness is also an important trait of a leader. For example, if an employee receives a raise, and he did nothing to deserve it, you will probably have a dozen dissatisfied people. When a subordinate makes a mistake, he needs to point it out, he needs to admit it, and then he needs to forget about it. A leader is always honest. Being honest with management means telling higher-ups what they may not always like to hear. Being honest with subordinates means telling them when they are right and when they are wrong. Being honest is the ability to admit your mistakes. It is not always easy to tell the truth without hurting others' feelings or appearing tactless, but honesty for the greater good of the firm and its employees should always come first. The leader is ambitious. He is happy not only for himself, but also for the achievements of his employees and shares their success. He thus inspires others with his enthusiasm and energy, and everyone succeeds in their careers. The leader is consistent and humble. He does not need the flattery of others, and he does not need to hide his mistakes. A leader must be a mentor. He helps his subordinates develop confidence, love for people, ambition, enthusiasm, honesty, poise and determination. The leader is confident. Self-confidence without arrogance, self-confidence without arrogance - this is distinctive features strong leader. To summarize, I would like to highlight the main qualities that a modern leader, which certainly characterize it as a leading unit. This is a combination of organizational skills, thinking characteristics (the ability to work on several problems at the same time, stability in situations of uncertainty), character traits (perseverance, energy, sensitivity). I believe that any successful leader (a financially successful person) is always a leader, and there are no exceptions. If you know how to adequately plan the activities of an enterprise in conditions of financial instability in the world, if you, on the one hand, are distinguished by perseverance in decision-making, and on the other hand, understanding in relation to the employees of your company - then you have leadership qualities that will help you retain avant-garde positions in the market. Leadership is a component of the competitive factor that provides an advance advantage over competing companies.
A manager is a person who must manage, coordinate and control certain processes in an enterprise. In other words, this is a manager or leader who is responsible for the effective operation of a certain area of activity. Nowadays, the profession of manager is very interesting, in demand, and people with the appropriate education always have a job. This is probably why I chose this type of activity for myself.
I entered the Department of Economics because... I believe that I have all the qualities necessary for successful work in this specialty, namely:
1) the ability to make decisions for which responsibility must be borne alone;
2) efficiency and self-confidence;
3) communication skills and the ability to be positively disposed towards the interlocutor;
4) the desire to participate in the work of a team that can improve the work of a company or enterprise.
Also, having studied and received the appropriate knowledge, you can open your own business, improve your financial situation, and, ultimately, get promoted on the career ladder. Having received the appropriate education, many doors will open for me, various types of activities that I can engage in.
1 Types of professional activities of a manager
Professional activity is a type of labor, a consequence of its differentiation. The success of professional activity presupposes mastery of its operational, organizational, psychological and moral aspects, as well as generalized professional knowledge and readiness to implement optimal ways to perform work tasks. Work experience in production does not always create attitudes towards acquiring certain professions. Interest in academic subjects has the greatest influence on students' professional intentions. But no matter how well the professional training is structured, upon completion educational institution A specialist with complete professional suitability and professional reliability has not yet been prepared. Here, much is determined by the organization of work of specialists and positive adaptation. The success of professional adaptation depends, first of all, on how effectively the principle of teaching what will be needed in production was implemented at the university.
Types of professional activities of a manager:
1) management activities. This is the work of the head of an organization, institution, or structural unit related to making management decisions; work in structural divisions of administrations that provide management of property, land, real estate, certain sectors of the urban economy, public relations, control and supervision bodies;
In my opinion, the most important because The profession of manager itself implies this activity.
2) organizational activities. This is work related to the organization, planning and control of the territory management process itself;
3) planning and financial activities. This is work in the economic and financial departments of government and management related to the organization of financial planning and management through financial levers;
4) marketing activities. Unlike marketing at an enterprise, the subject of which is its products or services, territory marketing is the work of unlocking its potential for the most effective use;
5) information and analytical activities. Objective information and objective analysis of the actual state of affairs are always necessary for making managerial, economic, and design decisions. Almost all local government bodies today have in their structures information and analytical services, which, based on the study of large volumes of external and internal information, develop appropriate recommendations for improving matters;
6) innovative activity. Special view activities related to the introduction of everything new into the management organization;
7) methodological activities. Work related to summarizing existing experience and developing methodological recommendations for improving matters.
8) economic activities related to economic analysis, forecasting and planning of socio-economic development of the territory. This includes the development of current and long-term plans development of territories, interaction with business entities, calculations of resource requirements, selection of the most effective solutions in conditions of limited resources;
After all, it’s the Faculty of Economics; This activity is necessary for a specialist.
9) design and research activities. This is work on the economic justification of design decisions related to the reconstruction, technical re-equipment and development of certain areas of the urban economy; work in economic departments of specialized design organizations;
10) diagnostic activities. In the process of managing a territory, difficulties and problems constantly arise, the reasons and methods for overcoming them are not obvious. We need professionals who are proficient in systems analysis methods, able to understand the problem and propose solutions. Few cities are yet using modern approaches to solving complex problems. It is this niche that the diagnostic activities of managers are designed to fill.
A graduate of the Research Institute of Russian Chemical Technology University must harmoniously combine a high level of fundamental scientific knowledge and professional training.
2 Features of a manager’s work
Today's personnel managers, or HR managers, are the prototype of those who were called personnel officers in Soviet times. They conducted personal affairs, wrote job descriptions, and issued passes.
There is an HR department in almost every self-respecting organization. HR managers of various specializations work here: those who recruit employees for the company, train them, motivate them and develop their professional potential.
An HR manager is a strategist. He must find a way to make each employee work as efficiently as possible. The main thing is the result, and to get it you need serious motivation. How to achieve it and explain to employees what the HR manager’s task is expected of them. To do this, he himself must understand the essence of innovation and the strategy of his company.
In addition, HR specialists monitor the level of qualifications of the company’s full-time employees and contribute to the growth of their professionalism. Why are various tests, trainings and educational programs used?
2.1 A bit of history
At the end of the 19th century, a completely new approach to the system of effective enterprise management and the role of the manager in this system began to be applied in the United States. The science of “Management” talked about achieving goals through the interaction of four actions: planning, organizing, motivation and control. The American Taylor was the first to give a report on how to organize production work, combining technological progress, scientific management methods and physical labor.
2.2 Pros of the profession
1) The personnel service gradually began to be treated as important: in the largest companies HR directors with the rank of vice presidents and members of the board of directors appear;
2) 80% of a company’s success depends on the activities of HR managers;
3) Sufficiently varied and diverse work;
4) People of this profession always have work.
2.3 Disadvantages of the profession
1) The need to inform the candidate that his candidacy did not pass the competitive selection or that the company no longer needs his services;
2) A high degree of responsibility for working with human resources, because the further success of the company depends on the correct choice of the HR manager;
3) Lack of mathematical and business training to create procedures in the field of payment and personnel certification
2.4 Social significance of the profession in society
How many years the enterprise will stay afloat depends on the manager’s strategy. Indicators of production efficiency and profit speak about the work of the manager and his team better than any words. If no one coordinated the activities of all links in the enterprise, then the working day would turn into chaos, lack of incentive to work and improper functioning of the elements of one structure. The consequences of negligence are then very difficult to eliminate, and even more difficult to regain the lost name and reputation.
2.5 Mass character and uniqueness of the profession
A manager must be able to manage a large number of employees and motivate them. You need to keep in mind an endless stream of information from different sources for effective company management. If a manager does not know how to make the enterprise’s profit increase by the nth number of times over a certain period, and also name methods for achieving set goals, then it is time for such a specialist to change his profession.
2.6 Risks of the profession
This profession is very interesting for its creative side. If you follow classical management strategies, you become immersed in corporate culture, you share the team spirit, you do everything to make your company the best. But there are also pitfalls. Managers of even the most successful companies cannot influence the economic situation in the country; no one is immune from collapse. After dismissal or bankruptcy of a company, it is difficult for a senior manager to find a job in the sense that he himself already has such a high bar that he does not want to lower it.
Conclusion
A manager must have a goal and strive to achieve it. Must be able to keep the team united. In a word, he must be a comprehensively developed, competent specialist. I will try very hard to become such a specialist. I am very attracted to the profession of manager, as it is very promising.
At the moment I am convinced of this. Already now in my work I use the skills acquired in the process of studying management. I really like that in this profession you need to think, reflect, make decisions, organize, plan. And the most interesting thing for me is that the profession of a manager involves working with people. I will definitely connect my future activities with this profession.