Becoming a Successful Manager

Copyright......Page 6
Contents......Page 9
Acknowledgments......Page 11
A Note from the Authors......Page 13
Introduction - How You Can Benefit from This Book......Page 15
Professionals Versus Nonprofessionals......Page 17
A Professional Manager’s Primary Role: Be an Effective Teacher......Page 19
A Professional Manager’s Secondary Role: Be a Sensitive Counselor......Page 21
A Professional Manager’s Third Role: Be a Master Gardener......Page 22
PART I Establishing a Solid Departmental Foundation......Page 25
Define Your Role......Page 27
How to Make Sure Your Garden Flourishes......Page 28
 Adopt Positive and Productive Attitudes......Page 33
The Three Elements of Attitudes......Page 34
Creating a Fertile Departmental Culture......Page 41
Get to Know Each Person in Your Department......Page 47
Share a Table for Two......Page 49
“Get to Know You” Questions......Page 50
Strategy for Asking Questions......Page 52
What You and Your Employees Have in Common......Page 55
Listen—Really Listen— and You Will Hear More than Words......Page 61
What Tone Can Tell You......Page 62
Building a Communication Bridge......Page 64
Detecting Hidden Messages......Page 66
Principles and Guidelines for Acknowledging Nonverbal Communication......Page 70
Listening to Nonverbal Messages......Page 73
Perpetuate Problem- Solving Attitudes......Page 77
Moving from Negative to Positive......Page 78
Characteristics of a Defensive Culture......Page 81
How Negative Influence Is Spread......Page 82
Common Trappings......Page 86
Characteristics of a Problem-Solving Culture......Page 87
Discourage Enemies from Invading Your Departmental Garden......Page 93
Don’t Let Weeds Take Root......Page 94
Discouraging Enemies from Harming Your Department......Page 98
How to Deal with Stubborn Weeds......Page 100
PART II Building on Your Foundation......Page 103
Give the Gift of Constructive Criticism......Page 107
Change Begins with Awareness......Page 108
How to Present Your Gifts Properly......Page 110
How to Gain Cooperation from Other Managers Without Being Critical......Page 113
Resolving Conflicts......Page 117
The Nature of Conflicts......Page 118
Three Examples of Conflicts......Page 120
Other Types of Conflicts......Page 122
Strategies for Dealing with Conflicts......Page 123
How to Handle Harassment......Page 127
Defining Harassment......Page 128
Guidelines for Managers......Page 129
Keep a Tight Ship......Page 133
The Art of Asking Questions......Page 137
Have a Clear Destination......Page 139
Techniques You Can Use to Your Advantage......Page 141
Ask Questions in the Right Way......Page 146
Confirm, Clarify, or Expand......Page 147
Practice, Practice, Practice......Page 148
Conduct Meaningful Performance Reviews......Page 151
The Importance of Performance Reviews......Page 152
The Performance Review Should Be a Process, Not an Event......Page 153
Six Steps for Productive Performance Reviews......Page 156
Everyone Wins......Page 160
Make Departmental Meetings Productive......Page 161
Use Everyone’s Time Well— It’s Expensive......Page 163
Provide a Reason for the Meeting......Page 167
Foster Healthy Communication Among Your Staff......Page 168
Make Sure the Purposes of Your Meeting Are Fulfilled......Page 169
Delegate Effectively and Allow Employees to Take Risks......Page 173
Delegation in Action......Page 174
Delegating Is Actually a Dual Task......Page 176
How to Minimize the Risks of Delegating......Page 177
Minimizing Your Employees’ Risks......Page 178
Delegating Effectively......Page 179
Coach Employees to Excel......Page 181
The Role of Exemplars......Page 182
Hire the Right People......Page 187
Hone Your Skills Before You Need Them......Page 188
Basic Steps to Good Hiring......Page 189
Conducting the Interview......Page 191
Targeting Scenarios to Generate Dialogue......Page 194
Every Step Counts......Page 195
Moving Forward......Page 197
Appendix......Page 201
What I Get Paid to Do......Page 202
Essentials for Managerial Excellence......Page 203
Encourage Positive Attitudes......Page 204
Being an Excellent Manager Begins with Being a Good Person—a Mensch......Page 205
How Do You Make Your Employees Feel?......Page 206
The Problem-Solving Process......Page 207
Characteristics of a Departmental Weed......Page 208
About the Authors......Page 209