This site displays advertisements and I may receive a small commission if you interact with them.

Being A Good Boss

Hi,

If you’re new to the website, welcome. I’m Alix and it’s my mission to help as many as possible work in jobs that meet their passion and purpose, in a workplace that’s the best it can be, making them happy and fulfilled adults, with the ripple effect that will make everything in your life better.

This website is here to provide support and hand holding where you may not have any. Be a ‘virtual mentor’ if you like…

Join me today as we look at ways to make you excel as a manager, offering hints and tips that will inspire loyalty and give you a cohesive team that you can rely on to meet work challenges under your expert guidance.

Note: This blog proved harder to write (and turned out much longer than my usual articles) than I thought it would. Having been in employment for longer than I would like you to know, I’ve had amazing bosses and bosses who shouldn’t be bosses. When I ran the research and then thought about my own experiences, I realised that most of the skills you need are covered by all the articles under the ‘Soft Skills in the workplace’ section of this website. Articles on communication, empathy, criticism in the workplace and more, so I don’t want to go over them verbatim here and waste your time if you’ve already read them. So, below you’ll find extra hints and tips on top of those articles that can help you be a better boss.

Introduction…

Firstly, I hope it goes without saying that anyone you work with should be treated with courtesy, no matter where they are on the hierarchy ladder. Those just starting in employment or who prefer to stay in the background, leaving the face-on client meetings, big firm decisions and budget monitoring to those more qualified and confident, are still cogs in the wheels of the workplace, filling critical positions and deserve respect.

So, whether you’ve just been promoted or are a manager already, let’s take a look at ways to excel.

Being a boss/manager is not just a personal achievement (but if you’ve just been promoted, congratulations) it makes you responsible for, usually, a group. How that group performs will be a reflection on you, so being a good manager will benefit both you, your team and your company.

The reality is that your management of your team will be judged. It’s part of your job remit and whether you meet time deadlines, the standard of work required and how ‘solid’ your team is, is down to you.

The upside is that, when your team is led and supported by you the results will be noted by your own management, securing your worth and possibly leading to possible opportunities.

The downside is that, when a boss is not a good boss, a team is unlikely to produce its best work and employees could leave as a result. This, at the very least, is costly to the firm, looking for a replacement, possibly the payment of expensive agency fees, along with time-consuming training.

And, of course, when this keeps repeating itself indefinitely your management will definitely notice.

Know your field…

A manager shows true leadership by knowing what’s involved in any task you allocate to your team. This makes you a source of knowledge they can call on, while knowing what’s involved in detail means you’ll be able to allocate tasks to the right person and estimate how long each should take so you can catch any delays or hiccups and plan for and correct them accordingly.

This includes keeping up to date with changes in, for instance, fast moving technology or updated practices and could mean experimenting with varying solutions as goalposts change and you’ll be able to inspire your team and ensure they have the guidance to face such challenges.

And let’s not forget confidence. Your team will feed off your confidence, giving them confidence in turn. When you then have to face challenges, they’ll respect and trust your decisions.

Delegation…

Part of a manager’s job includes being in charge (it’s literally in the name). However, by definition, you will have a team of people to whom tasks can be delegated to. This is a skill in itself.

Knowing who to give what task to is critical to ensure smooth operations.

Everyone has things they do well and others that they aren’t so great at. This is not a failure, it’s a reality. Knowing your team, their strengths and weaknesses, will allow you to allocate tasks according to skills and personalities.

Delegating also includes empowering your team.

Some of your team may be working towards their dream job. Empowering them while encouraging learning and development in their current position and expanding their skills while making sure they have your support while they learn is key.

So, know your team, identify skills, consider additional skill learning and allocate away – after reading up on the art of communication below.

Communication (and knowing your team)…

Managers must communicate clear instructions when allocating tasks.

The use of simple language, rather than jargon, ensures that they’ll understand the instructions. If they don’t, of course, we both know how that’s going to end. If an employee doesn’t understand what they’re being asked to do, how can they achieve it?

As you know, this website covers beginning school through GCSEs and into higher education and employment and, from in-depth research, it became clear that when studying for GCSEs different learning methods was key and I assume this will carry over into employment.

Speaking to them in a language they understand easier, ie via diagrams, written instructions, or verbal makes it easier for them to understand their assignments.

Under this heading we should also cover empathy, the ability to see something from someone else’s point of view – think ‘walk in another man’s shoes’.

By knowing your team, you can pinpoint why something could become a difficulty and halt it in its tracks, before it derails the team’s progress. And make your team and their contributions stronger.

The art of listening…

The second part of communication is, of course, listening. As a manager, it is critical that you listen to your team – no matter what they’re telling you (obviously I’m referring to work talk, not personal).

When meeting as a team to discuss a new task, never shut down an employee when they’re making suggestions, or others, less confident, could avoid raising perceived challenges, or ideas, freely and you could miss out on, perhaps, a brilliant idea, making your end result epic.

Being part of your team…

A manager is also considered part of the team they manage. Staying late when work demands it of your team, builds a close, supportive, loyal group.

Promoting a stress-free atmosphere…

We all have bad days. Nights where we woke up just too many times, or maybe an argument at home before you come in but it is never an excuse to ‘kick the cat’ at work.

Effective bosses hide their own negative feelings, protecting their team and avoiding the possibility of making the workplace stressful just because they’re in a bad mood.

Inspiring trust…

Trust works best when it’s two-way. Actually, it’s the only way.

Your team must have trust in your judgement, the confidence to know that you support them and have their back. They also need the confidence to know they can confide in you, bring challenges they’re facing rather than hide it in perceived shame or try and disguise it if they don’t feel they can come to you.

Conversely, you must show trust in them. No micromanaging. To be blunt, if you have to micromanage their work something’s wrong and this should be addressed sooner rather than later.

Note: I worked in a small accountancy firm with a manager who had to review accounts before the director met with a client. Instead of running a cursory check that all felt right, he totally redid them from scratch. This had three major repercussions. First, his staff knew he didn’t trust them and morale slumped, secondly, he wasn’t working on his own responsibilities and, lastly, the accounts cost twice as much to prepare (actually even more considering the price he would have to charge for his time). Result? The firm could not justify charging more than double for the accounts when it was an internal issue, trainees left, taking with them their knowledge of the clients, and meaning that new trainees needed to be found, hired and trained. All of this was a no-win for the firm. If you don’t feel confident in your team, work out why and deal with it.

Be approachable.

Trust must flow between you. Give your team the freedom to perform their tasks using their skills, but leave your door open for if they need you.

Junior staff may be trainees or just need guidance when facing unfamiliar challenges. Your attitude to them on these occasions can make or break all of the above, trust, confidence, communication. Where managers are unapproachable delays will inevitably follow.

Note: I’ve seen this in action where the manager would glance up from their desk irritated when approached and give curt (even rude or sarcastic) responses to trainees asking for help. I’ve found same trainees crying in toilets as a result and had others in the same team confide they were too scared to go to the manager for help, afraid of what the response would be. Crying! Afraid! It was shameful. And the result? Trainee after trainee left. No one should face that sort of abuse in a workplace – it goes against everything this website stands for. And a last comment on this particular subject – if you’re in this position get out before it gets inside your head and you believe you are the problem. Please.

Be organised (and patient)…

Organisation is a huge part of being a good manager.

Keeping on top of all the different threads associated with tasks is crucial to success.

When allocating a task, managers should also assign a realistic timeline for its completion (this is where knowing your field is crucial). Arranging frequent reality checks ensures deadlines are met and no tasks slip through the net.

And under this heading we can also cover patience.

Deadlines looming can, unsurprisingly, put an enormous amount of pressure on a team and individuals, especially if they’re behind. Having a manager that is patient can help defuse potential stress. Again, by holding regular check-ins you can cross check timelines and reduce stress by catching delays sooner, stepping in to help.

Saying no…

A good boss must know how to say no.

When asked to take on ‘one more task’ when your team is at its maximum capacity already, saying no is not a weakness. You must be able to protect them from burnout.

It can be detrimental to your team and, by association, you, when it’s not possible to meet the deadline for your current obligations should you add more to their workload.

Saying no, backed up by a valid reason, will enhance your team’s reputation. Explaining that you wouldn’t be able to meet the new deadline due to existing priorities and keeping to that, will raise your worth with your team whilst not letting down your management.

It’s not a sign of weakness, it’s the opposite.

Mistakes…

As we all know, humans make mistakes.

It is not a weakness to acknowledge these, even as a manager.

And when the mistake is linked to work, discussing them with colleagues, is a strength they will appreciate. It can promote an environment where employees are less inclined to try and hide any they make, keeping their fingers crossed that each isn’t important, maybe until it’s too late to correct (though we’re circling back here to having regular updates on progress).

Employee feedback…

Nothing’s worse than doing your job without input from your boss. Having doubts about whether you’re doing a good job can affect morale, with a knock-on effect on the whole team.

Feedback, whether positive or negative, is a very important parameter in a professional environment.

Yearly appraisals help employees know where they are succeeding or where improvements could be made.

Note: When I worked in London for large organisations, annual appraisals were the norm. When I moved to work locally, for a very small firm, I actually had to ask for the three-month appraisal set out in my offer letter as a term of my continuing employment. I spent a good amount of time worrying about why it hadn’t happened when, in fact, the person I worked for just didn’t think it important as I was doing a great job. Phew!

Giving feedback on a more casual basis can be helpful, making it less structured and formal. Advising an employee that they’ve done a good job when they have and not waiting for an annual appraisal, can encourage that employee to feel it’s natural to discuss performance on an ad-hoc basis and can make giving negative feedback easier, obviously when handled properly. Definitely read the article ‘Criticism in the Workplace – An Opportunity’ first - worth every second I promise.

Note: when I asked a manager, who worked in the same department as me, whether he’d told a colleague they’d done a good job on completion of a task, he replied that they were just doing their job, so it wasn’t appropriate. I believe that giving praise where due makes people feel valued with the accompanying knock-on effect that has on team morale.

Recognising your team’s successes…

Following on from employee feedback, it’s rare that employees wouldn’t appreciate recognition for a good job on the completion of a set task. It increases motivation and performance, encouraging employees to do good work.

Of course, we should all do the best we can every day – if only because we’re paid to do so – but personal recognition can be a huge boost.

Note: Of course, if you’ve read my book ‘I Am Choosing My Options’, you’ll already be either in a job, or at least working towards your dream job and giving your all because you want to and because it’s the one you’ve chosen that fits your personality and needs.

Good managers are capable of expressing their gratitude, and that of the company, through a variety of gestures that can be adapted to the environment. Examples include a thank-you email, detailed, positive feedback, or, where appropriate, individual bonuses.

Employees need to develop…

Going back to appraisals, bosses should be evaluating their team to look at ways they can help them grow and learn.

Annual appraisals is a good time to discuss an employee’s future then providing them with opportunities to learn new skills – maybe it’s a qualification, or just broader experience - will demonstrate that you’re invested in their future.

And, of course, it may be that you want to progress with the firm too.

Identifying a possible replacement and giving them the tools and skills - right qualifications, experience and, of course, firm-knowledge - so they’re ready when the time comes, will be for the good of the firm.

And one extra – have some fun…

And just to throw a spanner in the works, it’s important to have fun. As a good manager, you need to stay focused in the workplace, but when you can, you can lead your team in having a touch of relaxation, bringing the team closer.

With deadlines approaching, curt conversations and brief, snappy email responses (to try and save a few seconds but easily read out of context) between staff can promote tension. A relaxing tea and coffee, with cakes together after completion, could go a long way to repairing any perceived slights.

Of course this is not advocating being unprofessional in the workplace, just that a less formal approach, where appropriate, can help employees feel more relaxed. Small nods with a smile that reaches your eyes, casual chats, bringing in cakes or hot cross buns (not just at Easter!), ordering in

from a local coffee shop, can add a touch of casualness, encouraging fun and relaxation in the workplace.

Conclusion…

Lastly, and this is important, being a manager is a serious step.

If you’re offered a managerial role, make sure you have all the qualifications you need and the right mindset, making you ready for the responsibility.

And, whether you’re taking a promotion, joining a new firm, or are well established already, take note of the above - it could make a difference and I do hope it helps.

Final note: Under the ‘Soft Skills in the Workplace’ section of this website you’ll find detailed articles on some of the above headings, like communication, listening, empathy, criticism in the workplace and more, offering hints and tips that you could find useful.

Take a visit and stay a while.

And lastly, good luck I have faith in you and am here for support,