A manager has to manage not just their subordinates, but themselves as well. Employees easily adopt good and bad habits of their bosses, which means that routine behavior of a manager influences the company’s operation. Business coaches state that habits of efficient managers are generally similar, and the trick is to implement them in corporate practices.
Managerial habits strongly influence the subordinates and the company’s efficiency, the experts believe. For instance, the head of Ericsson answers work mail first thing in the morning, while the founder of Apple used to wake up at 6 a.m. for further efficiency. Having surveyed a few managers from Russia, DP has compiled a list of the best and the worst routine habits of those who manage people.
A Smile, a Handshake, and Memory
“The main thing for a manager is to know their plan for the day and the main priorities once they wake up. Otherwise, they may lose track of the important things: over the day, 50% of all tasks are unplanned for,” says Vera Starodubtseva, FCCA, head of ACCA in Russia.
Nelly Orlova, founder of InnMind, calls it business of the day. “Negotiations first, strategy second,” she explains. “Every morning the partners and I choose a business for the day, which is what is the most beneficial for our work. It helps keep strategic areas in top priority. Meetups, skype sessions, phone calls, correspondence with customers are for the second half of the day, when your brain is tired of generating new ideas.” The main thing is to clearly stipulate the business of the day for yourself and your subordinates, so that everyone would know, business coaches add. This can be done right after morning routine, as a greeting from the boss is a great ritual to raise spirits, psychologists say. Thus, the team would perceive new tasks more easily.
“It’s very useful to say hello to as many subordinates as you can in the morning,” says Sergei Parkhomenko, managing partner at Ideas&Solutions. He notes that Russians, who emotionally align with South Americans and Italians, value such a contact very much.
Usually top managers distance themselves from regular managers and tend to reduce all communications to a minimum possible level. Seasoned business coaches warn: such a behavior results in misunderstanding of the work environment, and impossibility of properly organizing personnel motivation. For that reason, Maria Shipovalova, HR director at FM Logistic, urges managers to know as many employes as possible in person, not just five or six key workers. Mikhail Umarov, CEO of Comunica, describes three habits of an effective manager: ask and hear the employees; remember personal stuff like birthdays or big events in their lives; and meet them in person on a regular basis.
“By taking part in rituals like handshakes, awards, or meetings with the best, it’s important to use them to support your corporate values,” says Sergei Myasoyedov, director of the Institute for Business and Business Administration at RANEPA. Otherwise, those rituals will lose all efficiency.
In Practice
Sergei Tiunov, the managing partner of BDO Unicon Outsourcing, shared his main habit of inviting his colleagues from other departnments, partners and customers for a dinner. “I don’t pursue any predetermined agenda. Yet an opportunity of sharing thoughts and information informally is very valuable: such dinners often result in new projects,” he explains.
Olga Kiseleva, director for development of World Gym in Russia combines meetings with her workouts. “I often hold skype conferences on a treadmill. It’s very convenient: 40 minutes of negotiations, and lots of problems are solved, 5 kilometers are behind, and 300 kcal are away. Answering your mail is best when you’re on an exercise bike,” she says.
Yana Bulmistre, head of marketing at BFA Development CJSC shared her habit that is now common with her employees: dedicating their lunch time to physical exercises like running or fitness exercises.
Olga Mitrofanova, deputy CEO for HR at Ruselprom, has a habit of reading professional books at least 20 minutes a day.
Bad Habits
It’s important not just to know what’s good for the team and your own efficiency, says Vladminir Kalen, psychologist and business coach. It’s just as important to cease doing what is reducing it all. First thing is to stop pointing out the mistakes and lowlights. “Most employees expect their managers to provide feedback for their job. Advise them as to what direction they should take, and wonder what are they going to do to improve their results,” the business coach says.
Other bad habits are indifference about employees and lack of trust. “It just kills the team, so you should ask them how they’re doing, and remember micromanagement and total control,” Vera Starodubtseva says.
“Closed information and excessive formalization of relationships in the team are also bad habits,” Vladimir Ostrovski says. “The practice shows that the teams cultivating informal communications, which push mutual help forwad, are the most efficient.”
The main thing here is to avoid back-slapping as it makes employees fairly uncontrollable, says Albert Mitsevich, head of HR at MFK Chestnoye Slovo.
Claiming the Mantle
Business coaches warn: one can’t just mimick habits of successful managers. Any habit that is beneficial for a company has to fit, and be functional and natural, says Mikhail Kazantsev, a psychologist. It means that the habit has to comply with the company’s corporate culture.
“Any great habit that contradicts the existing corporate culture creates an ambiguity field that shapes a negative moral climate in the team. It’s some sort of a corporate schizophrenia where key rules of the game conflict with each other,” he explains.
Functionality of a habit is its ability to benefit the company, and its disengagement is about full compliance with the manager’s values, character, and style. There’s nothing worse than positive habits that look artificial, the psychologist warns: the team won’t believe its boss and will consider them a cheap manipulator.
It’s also bad for the manager themselves, says the expert. It causes chronic fatigue, and increases the probability of professional and emotional breakdowns. It influences the subordinates and the company as a whole. A fish rots from a head down.
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