By Ikenna M. Okafor, (OgaHR)
Managing people is very dynamic and there is no “one size fits all” theory to achieve this. This is because humans in nature are dynamic due to various reasons. This is why progressive organizations have adopted Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging as a key strategy to achieve this. Managing people properly is crucial; if done poorly, it could lead to lawlessness, anxiety, or chaos in the system. Therefore, to avoid these, you should first discuss with the people you are about to manage. Discuss your style of leadership and discuss expectations. By going this route, you would have to get them to know you and trust you (your capabilities and competencies) as people would only naturally submit to one who they are sure is capable of handling all issues that bother around and affect them.
After getting them to know you, also get to know the people you will be managing. Know their ideologies, their motivations, and aspirations. Their previous history and prospects are also paramount. Understand their challenges and how you can be of support to them. Do not focus only on your subordinates, but also on those above you as they are people you would have to manage. In fact, “managing up” as Harvard Business Review, 2010 would put it needs to be taken even from a more strategic point of view than “managing down”.
The next thing you may wish to look at is the organization. You would need to ask about the organizational objectives, its mission and vision, its values, and the culture it upholds. This will help you understand why certain people behave the way they do. I worked in an organization where “eye service” was the order of the day. The Management of that organization seems to reward workers in that organization probably based on “eye service”. The Management of the organization rewarded all those who brought gossip to the Executive Chairman or who reported every single action by another employee to the Executive Chairman without minding if they reported to the Line Managers or Human Resources to address the issues.
These actions led to unhealthy competition and intra-departmental rivalry and with time the entire organization became more toxic than a war zone. People like us took a bow for the sake of our mental sanity. This same organization extended its hands of employment to me in 2021 and I still turned them down. Therefore, it is important to understand any organization you find yourself in as doing this will help you gauge the kind of people that work there.
When managing people, have strong and good personal values. This will save you from trouble. For instance, be disciplined and have high integrity. Don’t be a manager who is known to be vindictive or takes undue advantage of people’s weaknesses. If you are perceived to be such a manager, you will lose the trust and support of your followers. Be known to be astute and transparent in all your dealings. If you are a leader who makes subordinates lie or do things that question integrity, kindly note that such shall be the measurement yardstick and description they would give about you. Adhere to punctuality, demonstrate a willingness to make sacrifices, and continuously expand your knowledge about the role you hold.
When formulating your management strategies, it is essential to commence with an evaluation of existing methodologies, followed by the identification of the most optimal approaches. Our strategies should also consider how to effectively manage change, as individuals are often hesitant to embrace anything that challenges the existing state of affairs due to apprehension about the unknown. Maximize all available internal resources first (both human and material) before moving to external sources. Map out the workability of these strategies in timelines and milestones. Also include who does what, when, and how.
Documentation is key to any serious administration. In administration, we always say “If it is not written, it didn’t happen”. Document your strategies and proposal and get it approved for implementation. Once that is done, it has moved from being your drive to an organizational drive. Documenting it will also help align strategies properly and guide your actions.
In all, your success as a manager (managing people) is highly dependent on the relationships and connections you can build around the people you are managing. Therefore, don’t be in a hurry, take things easy and get things done gradually and professionally. Trust the process.
