Managers are in constant action. Virtually every study of managers in action has found that thsey switch frequently from task to task, changing their focus of attention to respond to issues as they arise, and engaging in a large volume of tasks of short duration.
Observations of CEO's noted they averaged 36 written and 16 verbal contacts per day, almost every one of them dealing with a distinct or different issue. Most of these activities were brief, lasting less than nine minutes.
Successful general managers studied over a five-year period:
When managers are in action, they are talking and listening. Studies on the nature of managerial work indicate that managers spend about two-thirds to three-quarters of their time in verbal activity. This is what the manager’s daily practice is all about. “Through other forms of talk, such as speeches and presentations managers establish definitions and meanings for their own actions and give others a sense of what the organization is about, where it is at, and what it is up to.
These verbal conversations are the means by which managers:
What do managers do to help organizations achieve top performance?
Exhibit 2a.2.The Roles Managers Play (Attribution: Copyright Rice University, OpenStax, under CC-BY 4.0 license)
Efficiency is a core skill. With less time than they need, with time fragmented into increasingly smaller units during the workday, with the workplace following many managers out the door and even on vacation, and with many more responsibilities loaded onto managers in downsized, flatter organizations, efficiency has become the core management skill of the twenty-first century.
Managers must increasingly be aware of threats and opportunities in their environment. Threats include technological breakthroughs on the part of competitors, obsolescence in a manager’s organization, and dramatically shortened product cycles. Opportunities might include product or service niches that are underserved, out-of-cycle hiring opportunities, mergers, purchases, or upgrades in equipment, space, or other assets. Managers who are carefully attuned to the marketplace and competitive environment will look for opportunities to gain an advantage.
The leader role gaining importance. Managers must be more sophisticated as strategists and mentors. A manager’s job involves much more than simple caretaking in a division of a large organization. Unless organizations are able to attract, train, motivate, retain, and promote good people, they cannot possibly hope to gain advantage over the competition. Thus, as leaders, managers must constantly act as mentors to those in the organization with promise and potential.
Each manager may have a diverse set of responsibilities. The amount of time spent on each activity and the importance of that activity will vary considerably. The two most salient perceptions of a manager are
Levels in the Management Hierarchy
Exhibit 2a.2. shows differences in managerial activities by hierarchical level. Senior executives will devote more of their time to conceptual issues, while front-line managers will concentrate their efforts on technical issues. For example, top managers rate high on such activities as long-range planning, monitoring business indicators, coordinating, and internal consulting. Lower-level managers, by contrast, rate high on supervising
Three types of managerial skills:
As shown in Exhibit 2a.3., different levels of these skills are required at different stages of the managerial hierarchy
Exhibit 2a.3. Difference in Skills Required for Successful Management According to Level in the Hierarchy (Attribution: Copyright Rice University, OpenStax, under CC-BY 4.0 license)
Managerial responsibilities also differ with respect to the type of department or function. There are differences for managers in
As with your choice of any career be sure to understand the ins and outs to ensure the job is a good fit for you. If you choose to become a manager understand that the emphasis on and intensity of managerial activities varies considerably by the department the manager is assigned to. Also, know that the mix of conceptual, human, and technical skills changes over time. Knowing the different mix of management activities by functional area can facilitate your selection of an area or areas that best match your skills and interests.
In many firms managers are rotated through departments as they move up in the hierarchy. In this way they obtain a well-rounded perspective on the responsibilities of the various departments. In their day-to-day tasks they must emphasize the right activities for their departments and their managerial levels. Knowing what types of activity to emphasize is the core of the manager’s job.