Title

There is plenty of evidence to suggest that many members of staff don't like the way they are managed. Recent research found that 60% of people left their manager rather than the organisation, and surveys regularly show a large number of employees believe they could do a better job than their supervisor. Management bullying is also reported to be on the rise across all sectors of local government, as the pressure to meet demanding performance targets and stay within tight budgets increases. The general picture then is of organisations with demanding – yet incompetent – managers who fail to value their staff. So, do we need to give our managers better people-management skills to change how they are viewed by their staff? Is it all down to incompetent managers, or could it be that some staff don't appreciate the need to manage their manager? Knowing your manager will give you the tools to know how best to influence him or her – and understand the right way to get additional resources or get their support for something you want to do. To start with, you must be aware of what you are dealing with. You can break down most managers into two basic types – those who are influenced by values and those who are influenced by fact. A winning argument for the former is ‘it's the right thing to do', emphasising fairness. In the latter case, a winning argument is ‘it is the rational and logical thing to do' emphasising the evidence. Managers who are value orientated tend to focus on the big picture at the expense of the detail, whereas those who want the facts and figures tend to focus on the detail. Of course, in presenting your case, you need to cover both aspects, but in managing your manager you need to understand where to put the emphases. In addition, you must know whether your manager wants to be seen as an innovator, a trend-setter, the first to try new ways, willing to take risks, or someone who wants to be seen as measured and wise – a safe pair of hands, someone whose judgment can be trusted. A trend-setter will want to be associated with high-profile initiatives – ‘let's tell people what we are doing' – whereas the wise approach is more likely to favour a low-profile ‘let's wait and see if it works first'. The Myers-Briggs psychometric indicator takes a more sophisticated and scientific approach to this, and identifies 16 personality or management types. Myers-Briggs is used to help managers identify their preferred style and give them an insight into how they can become more effective. It is also used in the recruitment process when the aim is to have a diverse team, the aim being for people to have complementary strengths. Of course, this also means that if you can spot what type of manager your colleague is, or what type of manager your manager is, then you can use this knowledge to manage them. I am not saying that if you are unfortunate enough to be managed by an indecisive, moody, unappreciative and insecure manager, it's your fault for not managing them properly. I am merely suggesting that if you know your manager, then you know best how to influence them. You understand the way to get additional resources. And you know how to get their support for something you want to do. In this way, managing your manager is as important as managing your staff. Blair McPherson is director of community services at Lancashire CC

Title

WHITEHALL

How to manage your manager

SUBSCRIBE TO CONTINUE READING