The Effective Manager Is the Manager Who Embraces Change

A good manager should deal with problems but concentrate on opportunities. Fixing problems only prevents damage, whereas watching for opportunities brings gains and results. Moreover, for a manager who applies an effective management style, change should be seen not as a threat but as an opportunity.

In line with the trend of globalization, the cultural diversity of the workforce around the world keeps increasing, and the ability to manage employees from different cultural backgrounds and belief systems is gaining ever greater significance. The question of how such a complex workforce can be managed most effectively has perhaps never been as important as it is now. Especially considering how much weight concepts such as productivity, competitiveness, preserving company culture and innovation carry today, it is plain to see how important an effective management discipline has become for today's businesses.

Seizing opportunities makes the difference
The first thing an effective manager must do is create the right action plan. Before taking a step on any matter, the effective manager must plan very well how and where to take those steps. This plan should be built within a framework that has its feet on the ground, looks out for the company's benefit and aims to increase productivity and competitiveness. Furthermore, this plan should not be static and unchangeable but, on the contrary, open to constant updating and development. Because every success or failure gives rise to new opportunities. Environmental conditions, the market, internal balances and people change frequently. Taking all this into account, the plan's course and timing should be examined continuously. A good manager should deal with problems but concentrate on opportunities. Fixing problems only prevents damage, whereas watching for opportunities brings gains and results. Nevertheless, for a manager who applies an effective management style, change should be seen as an opportunity, not a threat. Changes inside and outside the company should be evaluated systematically, and thought should be given to how they can be made useful for the company.

The right option for the company must be determined
It is an undeniable fact that what brings out a business's success and competitiveness is its human resources. Seen through this window, managing human resources effectively is a manager's foremost responsibility. Therefore, the question a manager who has set their sights on the company's — and their own — success must ask is: "What needs to be done?" This is the only way to involve employees in management and, when the time comes, in problems. This question must be taken seriously, and skipping it can condemn even the most talented manager to failure. The answer to this question usually brings more than one urgent task to the agenda. What an effective manager will do is determine, among these tasks and possibilities, the one best suited to the situation, and act. The second question an effective manager must ask should be: "What is the right thing for our company?" Because sometimes the things that need to be done in the current situation may conflict with the interests of managers, company owners, shareholders or employees. That is precisely the purpose of asking this question. What matters is determining what is right not for anyone in particular, but for the company.

I must know how to say "we", not "I"
It may sound a little clichéd, but it is an indisputable fact that a good manager is someone who knows how to say "we" instead of "I". Even though the greatest responsibility in a business rests with the manager personally, success is always a team effort. To give employees this feeling and increase motivation, a good manager must always learn to say "we". Although the manager is the authority who makes the final decision, an effective manager should always be the one who listens the most and speaks last. Another important point is that the effective manager must be able to carry the responsibility for the decisions taken. The most dangerous thing when making decisions is for them to be known only by senior executives. A decision does not count as taken until people are aware of it. The timeline of the plan should be known by the necessary people, and even if not everyone agrees with the plan 100 percent, they should be brought to feel sympathy for it and to understand it. This is very important, because employees know and assess their own work even better than the CEO. The aim is for these people to be in communication with management. The most important reason some large companies have gone under is that this communication was not used.

Author: Atakan Genç