Three Main Attributes Required to Be a Successful Manager

Three Main Attributes Required to be a Successful Manager

Three Main Attributes required to be a Successful Manager

A successful manager is someone who work with and through peoples and achieve stated objectives .Obviously this achievement is done through his or her team of employees. This essay is going to look at the skills of leadership, teamwork and communication within these teams. Firstly look at an overview of different management concepts and issues.

Are Managers born or made? There has always been great debate over this statement, although the answer must surely be a combination of both. Even if a manager posses certain innate qualities that make for a potentially successful manager, these natural talents need to be encouraged through proper guidance and structured training both educational and whilst performing the role (Mullins, 2010).

Fayol (1916) looked at management as a technical process that could be analysed and taught. Fayol’s list of six managerial activities, now 90 years old continue to be used today and they are as follows:

Forecasting- Predicting what will happen in the future.

Planning- Devising a course of action to meet that expected demand.

Organizing- Mobilizing materials and resources by allocating separate tasks to different departments, units and individuals.

Commanding- Providing direction to employees, now more commonly referred to as directing or motivating.

Co-ordinating- Making sure that activities and resources are working well together towards the common goal.

Controlling- Monitoring progress to ensure that plans are being carried out properly Fayol (1916) as cited in (Huczynski, and Buchanan, 2007, pp 499).

In a context of management it is a controversy that management is a science, an art or a profession. There are different thoughts about management; some consider it is a science, while some say it is an art. In developing this argument Watson (1986) suggested management could be viewed not only as an art or science but also as magic and politics. His suggestions are as follows:

Management, as a science

Successful managers are those who have learned the appropriate body of knowledge, and have developed an ability to apply acquired skills and techniques.

Management, as an art

Successful managers are those born with appropriate intuition, intelligence and personality which they develop through the practice of leadership.

Management, as magic

Successful managers are those who