Stephen Soundering - Management 101

Look up the word manager on the Internet or in any reference book and you will find many different definitions. They range from the coach of a sporting team to an individual hired to manage a celebritys business or personal affairs to a computer server that provides the communication link between the systems administrator and affiliated devices on a network. But the most common definition is of someone responsible for directing or organizing a group of employees or a project. In other words, someone like you.

Managers of various organizations and companies come in many flavorsthey can be directors, group or section leaders, various vice presidents, chief operating officers, even heads of boards of directors. In the truest sense, even the president of the United States is a manager.

According to management expert Bill Warner, despite their varying responsibilities all managers have several things in common: They are leaders, project managers, and coaches who use department resourcesboth people and equipmentto get the job done. They develop strategies, organize the department, set priorities and make decisions, place and ensure the training of their workers, delegate responsibilities, find solutions, make sure employees have adequate resources to do the job, communicate with department and outside sources, and represent (both internally and externally) and help determine company policy.

Managers also have a number of soft duties: establishing and solidifying relationships within and outside of the company; creating and nurturing a positive work environment so people can support each other within the team; and coachingworking with individuals such that they have a clear idea of how they can contribute and thus improve their performance so that they may put forward their best efforts. Managers also serve as mentors, encouraging new talent and advising their employees on their career paths. In addition, they act as a conduit to higher-level management as they report on the progress of their department and other issues that can affect corporate decision-making.

When it comes down to it, managers are responsible for everything in their arena. No matter what you manage or how many people you manage, when it comes to your area of responsibility, the buck stops with you.

Vast amounts of information exist outlining what a manager should and should not do. In fact, there is so much information that it is very difficult to know where to start. And even when you know where to look, no one can learn everything. The principal objective must therefore be to identify those ideas that will produce the bulk of the resultsand that is an application of the 80:20 rule.

The 80:20 rule states that you will often find an (approximately) 80:20 ratio between related factors. For example:

• 80 percent of the sales revenue derives from 20 percent of the customers.
• 80 percent of the problems are caused by 20 percent of the people.
• 80 percent of the results come from 20 percent of the activities.

With this in mind, you can begin to understand the importance of focusing on the 20 percent that needs to be attended to at any given moment. Focusing on the 20 percent allows managers to prioritize how they spend their time. Because new managers often lack experience, they typically find that their schedule fills up quickly because they try to do everything. Prioritizing enables the manager to have an impact without spending sixty hours a week in the office.

The 80:20 rule enables you to weed out the problems and concentrate on the areas that need improvement. It will also help you identify strengths within your organization, as well as benchmark high achievers.