Recruiting and training first-class management is a cornerstone for maximizing business value. A good manager will get the most out of his team. Top managers understand the talents of their employees and find ways to match those talents with the right roles. They truly understand you cannot fit a square peg into a round hole! In this article our focus is on identifying some of the key characteristics to look for when recruiting management and discovering some of their underlying motivations.

One of the strongest influencing factors on performance is ability. Your management team must have the skills, know-how, and resources to accomplish their task. Assess your current management team to uncover their current deficiencies and recruit to bridge the gap.

Your starting point for building a motivated management team is to first understand a few of the key characteristics to look for when recruiting and hiring. The management team must be able to manage change, communicate, and coach. Frequently, companies are hiring managers for jobs that were previously non-existent. As small to medium sized companies grow, new positions are born. It becomes especially critical to determine the needs of the position before beginning the recruiting process. Your goal is to find managers who fit the need rather than finding a need to fit the manager.

New managers usually bring change and most employees fear change. Employees prefer an environment that is predictable and provides security. Since change is inevitable, you need managers who can manage change effectively.

Communication is another key characteristic of effective managers. Employees watch what managers do more than what they say. Your management team must be able to make the business mission come to life through their words and deeds.

Your managers need to be strong coaches. They must embrace the idea that each person in the organization is an integral part of the ongoing success of the company. Management should be skillful at developing talent within the organization. They should be adept at discerning people’s strengths and weaknesses thereby enabling them to gain full benefit out of each employee.

Once the need is determined, time must be invested in the process of filtering through the candidates. Too many business owners avoid spending the necessary time to screen properly. Increase your chances of hiring the right manager by:

·      Having a specific list of the required skills.

·      Comparing previous experience against corporate needs.

·      Implementing a focused, well-planned interview process.

·      Utilizing industry tests and role playing.

·      Encouraging feedback on the candidate from others within your organization.

·      Checking backgrounds and prior work experience thoroughly.

Action Step

Implement a systematic and thorough interview process for all employees – especially managers.

Once you have selected the right managers, you must then commit to supplying the needed resources. Too many business owners expect managers to provide superior results without appropriate resources.

As a business owner, it falls your responsibility to motivate your management team. While they must have a certain degree of self-drive, management will obviously be more productive given the right motivation. People are motivated by many different factors but generally speaking they fall into one of three categories:

·      Financial

·      Recognition

·      Potential

The majority of discussions on motivation begin and end with financial rewards. Since it is an important factor, your challenge as a business owner is to maximize your benefit received from the compensation you pay your management team. Your overriding goal is to reward the team members who create sustainable value for your company. The issue is rarely the amount of compensation but how it is earned. As an owner, you are tasked with creating and implementing a plan that compensates for long-term results. Too few companies have a clear relationship between results and pay. Does your compensation plan protect the company’s long-term interests or does it unwittingly encourage managers to adopt a short-term “get as much as you can” attitude? The most common choices for compensation are generally base salary, incentive compensation, health benefits, retirement benefits, and stock programs.

Most people begin with the assumption that money is the only motivating factor; however, some studies indicate the financial element is no higher than number three or four on the list of motivating factors. Recognition is a very important element to be addressed in the motivational mix as well. Recognition is often perceived as a contrived way to get people to do what you want them to do. Insert sincerity into recognition and it becomes a powerful motivating force. A simple well-meaning thank you goes a long way. Respect and appreciation for a job well done give the manager a sense of purpose and accomplishment.

Managers need to understand the potential for growth that exists within your company. They need to know you are committed to involving them in as much high-level decision making as possible. As an owner, it is incumbent upon you to articulate a vision for their future that paves the way for personal and vocational growth.  Recruiting properly and implementing sound motivational principles will lead to greater management loyalty and enhanced business value.

Mark Jordan is Managing Partner of Vercor, a national mergers and acquisitions firm.  He also holds an MBA, BS in Business Administration, and numerous designations.  He can be reached at 770-522-0300 or mark@vercoradvisor.com.

Copyright © 2004, Mark T. Jordan. All rights reserved. Permission granted to reprint this article on your website or in your newsletter without alteration if you include this copyright statement.