Develop effective management and recruiting systems that show you how to recruit and keep the best people for your business.

After defining last week what motivates employees – a sense of mission and purpose – I now want to get into managing people.

Assuming you already have people onboard, I’m going to tackle the managing side of people first. If you don’t have any employees, this part of the equation is still critical, as it points to what you will do and how you need to do it from the second you bring on your first employee.

Today’s businesses, especially small businesses, call for making the most of limited resources, including people. The business leader can’t do it all. He or she has to make the most of every resource and that means making the best possible use of the people of the business, and in return, providing them with rewarding, satisfying jobs and careers which, in turn, goes a long way to making their lives better.

My definition of managing is:

• Helping people who report directly to you be the best they can be.
• Ensuring they have the most effective and efficient ways (systems) to do their work.
• Teaching them to manage their direct reports to be the best they can be.

This might sound a bit simplistic. But, if you think about it, when they’re being the best they can be, that’s fulfilling their role in your business, representing the values of our business toward your customers and each other, wouldn’t you have a great business?
I don’t see managing as being the same as supervising, or even worse, bossing. There are so many businesses out there where someone is given the title of manager, but not the responsibility. To me bossing infers a one way street. Do as I tell you, or else. I have a couple of levels of managing which aren’t levels I want you to have, such as managing by imposition. Imposing something on people – “Do this because I say so. You don’t need to know why” or managing by inquisition, asking questions – “Have you done it yet? Why not?” Then there is the one I do like…managing by agreement. I go into that a bit later.

Managing is a delicate balance of:

• toughness and compassion
• it’s about close relationships and professional distance
• it’s about partnership and leadership
• hands-on and hands-off

You don’t have to be their best friend. In fact, that can actually be detractor to the relationship. You have to accept that there is going to come a time when you hear your staff organizing to go to the pub after work and you aren’t invited. Don’t get upset. Accept it. It’s just a sign of the business growing. It doesn’t mean that you can’t still have a close relationship with them at work. This is about a balance between close relationships and professional distance.

Now you undoubtedly already have well developed ideas and experience in the art and science of managing. So, a quick review. How are you doing so far? Are you effective? Is it easy? Do you get the results you need every time? Do you wish you were better at it? Actually most of us do.

Becoming a great manager is something that you can do.

Stay tuned. Next week, in Part III, I will discuss Getting your People on Board.

Until then…

If you missed Part I, you can read it by clicking here.

P.S. Learn more about working ON your business–talk to the coach! Click here to connect with me!