The 3Ds of management

Stress Reduction by eamoncurry123, on FlickrManagement is stressful. There’s no getting away from it. Based on my own experience in the workplace (as a manager and employee) and as a business lecturer it strikes me that managers can reduce stress for themselves and their team by understanding and acting upon the 3 key responsibilities identified below: Delegate Consider tasks which can be allocated to those under your supervision but take care to ensure that they understand what to do, why they are being asked to do it and how doing it will benefit them (and maybe their colleagues and career prospects). Think empowerment, not encroachment. Decide Be decisive. Take action and make things happen. It’s okay to adopt a democratic or laissez-faire leadership style if it works for you and your working environment but don’t use listening to your staff as an excuse for inaction. Don’t be afraid to reflect and change your approach if something isn’t working but don’t delay. Time is money. Deliver Be accountable. Know your Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). Monitor progress closely but trust your team to deliver with your guidance. Praise, recognition and sharing of best practice should lead to improved motivation of your team, a key factor in performance. Lead by example. What do you think? This could form the basis for discussion of management, motivation, empowerment, team building and more with business students. Maybe they could be challenged to come up with a management manifesto, providing advice for new managers on how to succeed and build a winning team…