Bare Bones Management

» Posted by on Jul 6, 2011 | 0 comments

I learned at an early age through my employment at Vons Grocery Stores that the way I was treated by management directly affected not only my quality of work, but my desire to improve and my comfort level.  I worked much harder and was the most satisfied with my job when my supervisor acknowledged my attitude and accomplishments, and spoke with me constructively about improvements needed.  Managers that led with a strict voice and fear tactics only made me anxious and eventually less likely to go that extra mile for them.

While I could never really be that employee that only did the minimum expected of them, I would not be happy in that environment and seek other employment.  Through those early experiences of my own, I have never forgotten what it feels like to be treated unfairly or with lack of respect.  Or how satisfying it was to be recognized for my efforts and abilities, and supported during growth of knowledge or skills. 

The balances I have learned have helped me to develop a productive relationship with the individuals I supervise.  It wasn’t always easy and it took many years and many projects to find what worked well for me.  I went through my “being a friend” stage, where I had to work harder to be heard, and the “hectic behind schedule” phase where my abundance of energy at times made my team very nervous.  Fortunately for me I had excellent mentors that helped me to realize how my actions affected the people around me, and led through example how to foster the respect needed to be a good leader and mentor.  I found a way to balance my power of the final word with being considerate and listening to the individuals opinions. (Unless of course it’s crunch time!)

I have experienced many successes managing team members by great communication: being very clear on what is expected of them and when it is due; having interim meetings as necessary to discuss progress, challenges and next steps; being available for one-on-one chats; and foremost being a supportive manager team members can come to when help is needed.

In my opinion CLEAR, OPEN COMMUNICATION is the key to the successful relationship needed between co-workers to reach project and company goals, whatever they may be.  Foster good communication, and the respect of your co-workers, and the ability to lead successful development teams to produce awesome results is in your hands.