Basic management skills are needed to run small businesses. Some business owners believe that leading vs. management is the most important. In fact, you have to lead and manage.
What makes a good manager? There is a style and skill of business management which is sure to focus; Especially for small business owners. If you are a small business owner or manager, it’s important to understand what basic management skills are and to try to put it in your own behavior. Why? Because some skills are more successful than others and because some styles will involve your employees, while others will involve them.
Business management skills such as planning, decision making, problem solving, controlling and directing, and measuring and reporting is needed for daily operations.
Using their small business plan, managers who effectively direct business operations. Communication, benchmarking, tracking and measurement is the tactics and strategies they use to check their direction, to adjust the plan (if necessary), and to advance the business. Good managers act to achieve the desired results; And they manage people and resources to get to the place they want.
Understanding what makes a good manager, means understanding what motivates employees. How do you build an environment and culture that encourages employees to participate? How you increase employee productivity and employee satisfaction; simultaneously? How do you recruit the best talent, and then save it? How do you train your staff to solve problems, make decisions, and involve other people in the process? These are just a few challenges, and responsibilities, manage.
As a manager, you need to understand what the style of general business management (autocratic, paternalistic, democratic, and passive is the most common style). And you need to understand what your style is, and how it affects business results.
Four business management styles:
Autocratis: Managers make all decisions; Management style “command and control” (Militaristis). Focus is on business; Don’t want a personal ‘item’ to block. The benefit is a decision made quickly. It costs in turn of high employees because employees find this style difficult, and stress.
Paternalistic: Managers make all decisions (or most of them) but focus on what is best for employees. The benefit is that employees feel the business takes care of them. The cost is that employees do not take care of business – they are not involved and have little risk.
Democrats: Managers want input from all majority ‘teams’ and rules. Often good decisions are made and employees feel involved in the business (the benefits of this style) but the process is very slow and you cannot always make everyone happy.
Passive: managers come down with responsibility to employees; and call it a delegation. The benefit is that employees often move forward and study in this environment. The cost is the direction is scattered and there can be many wrong early because there are no real managers.
Managers usually use more than one style, depending on the situation. If brainstorming new product ideas that are creative is focus today, then managers may want to use a democratic or passive style. If the decision about maintaining or firing employees who perform poorly has to be done, managers may need to use an autocratic or paternalistic style (hopefully not a democratic or passive style).
In most small businesses, business owners are also managers and leaders. In your business, make sure you have a good understanding of your own business management style, skills, and quality and learn how to control it and use it as needed.