7/12/24, 5:15 PM 7 Must-Have Management Skills (and How You Can Develop Them) | Rasmussen University

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DEGREES / BUSINESS BLOG / BUSINESS MANAGEMENT

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By Carrie Mesrobian on 03/14/2022
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What's your name?

First Name
It seems every year, there’s a new
management training trend that kicks off a Last Name
storm of discussion in offices and online.
These approaches come and go like teenage Contact Information
trends, but when you look past the style and
Email Address
catchy names, you’ll often find a similar
foundation of core skills that lead to effective
managers. Phone Number

If you have a management role in your career ZIP Code

vision, you don’t have to chase the latest and
greatest management techniques from self-
proclaimed business gurus to make progress

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—you can first focus on building a solid Program Preferences

foundation.
I'm Interested in ...
To help you get a better sense of what
management skills really matter for effective Program of Interest
leadership, we asked professionals who
manage and lead teams across a range of Degree Level Desire
industries to identify some of the must-have
management skills to have in your toolkit—
and what you can do to develop them. Do you have
potential transfer
credits?
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skills for future leaders to I'd like to find out

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1. Clear, direct communication Rasmussen University to contact
The most important skill cited by all we spoke me by email, phone or text
message at the number
to is communication. This may seem obvious,
provided. There is no obligation
but this can be a stumbling point for many to enroll.
managers who relied more on their technical
know-how to reach this stage in their careers. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and
the Google Privacy Policy and
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Why this matters: “Strong manager–
employee relationships are built on the
foundation of clear and effective
communication,” says Tanner Arnold,
president of Revelation Machinery .
“Managers must be able to clearly
communicate deadlines and project updates,
make corporate announcements, assign
assignments, give constructive comments,
answer inquiries and conduct tough
discussions.”

How to develop: The good news is that

communication is a skill that can be learned
and developed. Public speaking groups,
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business writing courses and increasing your

overall awareness of how you communicate
best can go a long way. There is also a wealth
of technology to help you connect with your
employees and offer them clear direction.

“The digital age has brought with it a slew of

new communication channels, making it easier
to choose one over the other,” says Zaeem
Chaudhary, architectural draftsman at AC
Design Solutions . “Managers that utilize a
combination of these ways to engage their
staff, such as face-to-face, phone and
electronic, have the best results.

2. Active listening
While it’s true being a good listener is also a
big part of being a strong communicator, the
act of listening is in itself an art that all great
managers strive to do on a regular basis.

Why this matters: “There’s a huge difference

between hearing things and listening,” says
Jake Romano, project manager at John the
Plumber . “Many people in leadership roles
ask the questions but don’t take in the
information. Your subordinates can often pick
up whether or not you genuinely care about
what they say. If they don’t think you care,
they won’t care to speak.”

Additionally, not everyone you work with is

going to be as direct of a communicator as
you’d like—sometimes, you’ll need to read
between the lines and pick up on context clues
to fully know where they stand.

How to develop: Anything you can do to

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practice putting an intentional focus on the

person speaking will help your listening skills.
Tina Hawk, senior vice president at GoodHire
®, says learning a new language is an
excellent way to get in this habit.

“Learning a new language opens up our mind

to the infinite ways in which people
communicate across and within cultures, and
helps to foster our active listening skills,
among others,” Hawk explains.

Another practice is to slow down, pay

attention to how much you are holding the
floor and resist the urge to spend your
listening time thinking about what you want to
say next.

“Be aware of how much space you’re taking up

in a conversation and pay attention to what
the other person says,” advises Steven
McConnell, director at Exceptional Resume
Writers . “Listen empathically and
concentrate on the individual’s words rather
than quietly creating an immediate response
in your thoughts while the other party is still
speaking.”

3. Delegation
The ability to delegate effectively is a vital
asset for any successful manager and one that
often takes a bit of time to master. Many new
managers worry that they’ll be perceived
poorly if they don’t handle every task or
project or if someone under their purview
completes the work poorly.

Why it matters: “A good manager will know

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that they don’t know everything and will be

comfortable letting members of their teams
be the experts,” says leadership
development consultant Sarah Finch.
“That means they need to empower their
teams with ownership and autonomy to get
the work done, not micromanage.”

Additionally, delegation provides opportunities

for team members to grow. If you were an
excellent individual contributor, it can feel a
little scary handing over some of those
responsibilities—particularly if your direct
report gets off to a shaky start. But remember,
much of your value as a manager is your
ability to train and build them up to be just as
effective as you. The sooner you can get
comfortable handing over the reins, the
better.

How to develop: Getting to know your team’s

strengths and goals plays a big part in learning
the art of delegation, according to Roy
Morejon, president of Enventys Partners .

“It’s a matter of truly taking the time to

understand your employee’s strengths and
weaknesses so that you can properly match
tasks to the person who has relevant
expertise,” adds Morejon.

4. Coaching and mentoring

Many we spoke with emphasized the need for
managers to see themselves as coaches and
mentors rather than “the boss.” While it’s true
that managers must make decisions on their
own at times, it’s crucial to see their actual role
is to lead their team towards their goals.

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Why this matters: “New managers especially

think that managing is about being in charge
and making decisions but it’s really about
leading people, and leadership is about trust
and motivation through influence,” says Peter
J. Dudley, author and executive coach .

This skill goes hand in hand with delegation.

By building up your teams’ competencies and
preparing them to take on new
responsibilities, you eventually clear time on
your own schedule to focus on higher-level
tasks and responsibilities.

How to develop: Good managers don’t see

their employees as subordinates but work
alongside their teams to get the job done.

“Employees respect a good manager who is

willing and able to get hands-on,” says Ariana
Flynn, marketing and communications
manager at Proxyrack . “Don’t just be the
guy behind the counter. To gain your team’s
approval, you’ll need to be able to jump right
in.”

While you’re “getting your hands dirty,” focus

on providing insight into why you’re doing
things a certain way and encourage your team
to ask questions. Showing that you’re
genuinely invested in the work and want them
to succeed can help build trust and make
further training efforts easier.

5. Knowing how to praise

effectively
We all know that kind words can go a long
way. Saying thank you, complimenting a job

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well done and taking a moment to share your

employees’ successes with others are just a
few methods good managers use to support
their teams. Not everyone receives these
responses the same way, however. Effective
managers pull from a large toolkit when it
comes to employee recognition.

Why this matters: “One of the most

important skills for good managers is
recognizing staff in individualized ways,” says
Melissa Kelly, general manager at Virtual
Team Building . “Some team members
prefer praise in public, while others prefer it to
be private. You will also have people who are
neutral on praise but love receiving cash
bonuses or other perks. By identifying what
makes each of your people tick, you can really
skyrocket engagement and morale at your
organization.”

While you might not always have the ability to

shower subordinates with cash bonuses, even
taking the time to write a thoughtful thank you
note can help. Showing that you honestly
appreciate their help can build trust and make
it easier to weather more challenging times.

How to develop: Fortunately, this is a skill that

you can practice in your everyday life, not just
at work.

“Try asking your friends or coworkers which

approach makes the biggest difference for
them and why,” Kelly says. “You might be
surprised when an introverted friend says they
love public recognition, and either way, you
can start identifying patterns in personalities
and outcomes. You can also practice! Try

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showing appreciation to people in different

ways and see how they react.”

Odds are that your family and friends will find

your efforts to say kind things and recognize
their strengths and talents to be quite positive,
too.

6. Conflict resolution
Conflict is inevitable to some degree in life.
Whether it’s disagreements about strategic
plans or just two challenging personalities on
a team butting heads, effective managers
need to understand how to handle and
resolve these conflicts in a fair and respectful
manner.

Why this matters: The consequences of poor

conflict management can linger on far past the
initial disagreement being resolved. Failing to
treat the situation fairly or waffling on the
decision can lead to simmering employee
resentment that may fully boil over later on.

“Unresolved disputes can have a negative

impact on staff performance or morale,
therefore it’s ideal to deescalate or resolve
conflicts as quickly as feasible,” says Andrew
Dale, technical director at CloudTech24 .
“When you understand conflict resolution, it is
also easier to navigate difficult issues such as
layoffs, unfavorable performance assessments
or missed deadlines.”

How to develop: Learning conflict resolution

takes time because it requires managers to
have confidence in their role and themselves
—and frankly, a combination of many of the

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other abilities listed in this article.

“The ability to squarely face conflict as and

when it arises requires us to be comfortable in
our own skin and sure of our own
responsibility,” says Hawk. “Developing conflict
resolution skills is as much about knowing
who you are and what your mission is as it is
about understanding other points of view.
Some people have a natural ability to see
multiple perspectives, but nevertheless, we
can always develop our own self-confidence
by stepping outside our comfort zone,
challenging ourselves and practicing
mindfulness.”

7. Flexibility
The ancient Greek philosopher Heraclitus once
wrote that “the only constant is change.”
Clearly, humans have been grappling with how
to adapt to a changing world for some time.
But flexibility is a skill that can be learned with
practice and energy.

Why this matters: In work, as in life, things

will not always go smoothly. But our response
to obstacles and surprises doesn’t have to be
negative.

“Setbacks are inevitable, especially in the

digital workplace,” says Chelsea Cohen, co-
founder of SoStocked ®. “Power outages,
burnt-out team members and canceled
meetings aren’t unique to any industry. Your
ability to view these challenges as
opportunities to diversify your resources will
determine the ultimate success of your
department. Fostering an agile environment

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will fuel your team’s creativity to surpass

obstacles.

How to develop: Effective managers learn to

see disruptions or difficulties as opportunities
for growth and creativity. Having to make a
path where there isn’t one often leads to
amazing solutions.

“Flexibility is the ability to recognize that there

are usually multiple methods to complete a
task,” explains Marc Stitt, chief marketing
officer at FMX . “Simply because one team
member decides to address a problem in a
different way than you would have no bearing
on whether the strategy is correct. In the end,
what matters most is the result.”

Round out your

management skills
Ready to build your skills and confidence as a
leader? While there are plenty of steps you can
take outside of the classroom, an academic
program can help you bridge the skills gap
and prepare you for management-level
thinking. Check out the Rasmussen University
Business Management page to learn more
about how our fully online programs can help
you take the next step in your education.

GoodHire is a registered trademark of Inflection, LLC.

SoStocked is a registered trademark of SoStocked, LLC.

Carrie Mesrobian
Carrie is a freelance copywriter at Collegis Education.

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She researches and writes articles, on behalf of

Rasmussen University, to help empower students to
achieve their career dreams through higher education.

Posted in Business Management | Tagged as business management / business

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