Question

According to research, employers want managers to possess three skills through education and experience. They are the following:

• Technical skill-The ability to perform a specific job in the field they work.
• Conceptual skill-The ability to think beyond the department in which you work to understand how the entire organization function as a whole.
• Human Skill-The soft skills of connecting and interacting with people.

Tell me about a time you encounter a manager who possess one of these skills. How did they effectively manage their team using the skill identified?

If a manager doesn’t possess these skills do you think they can be an effective manager. Why or Why not.

Answer 1

1. One of the times I encountered a manager with one of these skills was in a financial services firm. The business manager in charge of the teams was highly skilled in the technical aspects of the job and knew the job better than anyone. This skill was very useful in training new employees who joined the organization. The training sessions and programs were headed on by the manager and his technical skills helped every employee in the initial stage as they were new to the organization and did not know how the market worked. The employees that joined after the business manager got transferred did not possess the kind of training that the previous batches were exposed to. The manager did a good job in the training part but lacked the overall management skills as he lacked the human skills in engaging with the new employees. Therefore, it is important to possess all the skills mentioned above. He effectively used the technical skills in training since he was good at it. The skills that were missing were the human skills which led to a high employee turnover.

2. If a manager lacks these skills, they might not be as effective as one should be. The reason is if the managers do not possess the technical skills, they will not be in a position to evaluate the employees or provide guidance to them. They cannot impart knowledge and will not know the progress of the operations in the firm. Similarly, conceptual skills are necessary to develop objectives that benefit the firm as a whole and not just the team. A manager can be effective only when the performance aligns with the organization's objectives. Human skills are essential to retain employees and motivate them to perform better. The effectiveness of a manager is seen when they can successfully motivate the employees and keep them from leaving the organization. Hence, all these skills are necessary to be an effective manager.