Category: Business

To succeed in business or life we must continually take remedial actions. Putting yourself on the line day after day can be extremely draining, especially when things do not work out as desired. Hence, each time a disappointing event happens, we need to get reminded of these famous failures:

Bill Gates founder and chairman of Microsoft, has literally changed the work culture of the world in the 21st century, by simplifying the way computer is being used. He was the world’s richest man for more than one decade. However, in the 1970’s before starting out, he was a Harvard University dropout. The most ironic part is that, he started a software company (that was soon to become Microsoft) by purchasing the software technology from “someone” for only $US50 back then.

Abraham Lincoln received no more than 5 years of formal education throughout his lifetime. When he grew up, he joined politics and had 12 major failures before he was elected the 16th President of the United States of America.

Isaac Newton was the greatest English mathematician of his generation. His work on optics and gravitation made him one of the greatest scientists the world has even known. Many thought that Isaac was born a genius, but he wasn’t! When he was young, he did very poorly in grade school, so poor that his teachers became clueless in improving his grades.

Ludwig van Beethoven, a German composer of classical music, is widely regarded as one of history’s supreme composers. His reputation has inspired ? and in many cases intimidated ? composers, musicians and audiences who were to come after him. Before the start of his career, Beethoven’s music teacher once said of him “as a composer, he is hopeless”. And during his career, he lost his hearing yet he managed to produce great music ? a deaf man composing music, ironic isn’t!

Thomas Edison who developed many devices that greatly influenced life in the 20th century. Edison is considered one of the most prolific inventors in history, holding 1,093 U.S patents to his name. When he was a boy his teacher told him he was too stupid to learn anything. When he set out on his own, he tried more than 9,000 experiments before he created the first successful light bulb.

The Woolworth Company was a retail company that  was one of the original five-and-ten- cent stores. The first Woolworth’s store was founded in 1878 by Frank Winfield Woolworth and soon grew to become one of the largest retail chains in the world in the 20th century. Before starting his own business, Woolworth got a job in a dry goods store when he was 21. But his employer would not let him serve any customer because he concluded that Frank “didn’t have enough common sense to serve the customers”.

Michael Jordon A phenomenal athlete with a unique combination of grace, speed, power, artistry, improvisational ability and an unquenchable competitive desire. Jordan single-handedly redefined the NBA superstar. Before joining NBA, Jordan was just an ordinary person, so ordinary that was he was removed from the high school basketball team because of his “lack of skill”.

Walter Disney was American film producer a director, screenwriter, voice actor and animator. One of the most well-known motion picture producers in the world, Disney founded a production company. The corporation, now known as The Walt Disney Company, makes average revenue of US $30 billion annually. Disney started his own business from his home garage and his very first cartoon production went bankrupt. During his first press conference, a newspaper editor ridiculed Walt Disney because he had no good ideas in film production.

Winston Churchill failed the 6th grade-However, that never stopped him to work harder! He strived and eventually became the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom during the Second World War. Churchill is generally regarded as one of the most important leaders in Britain and world history. In a poll conducted by the BBC in 2002 to identify the “100 Greatest Britons”, participants voted Churchill as the most important of all.

Steven Spielberg is an American film director. He has won 3 Academy Awards and ranks among the most successful filmmakers in history. Most of all, Steven was recognized as the financially most successful motion picture director of all time. During his childhood, Spielberg dropped out of junior high school. He was persuaded to come back and was placed in a learning-disabled class. He only lasted a month and then dropped out of school forever.

Albert Einstein was a theoretical physicist widely regarded as the most important scientist of the 20th century. He was awarded the 1921 Nobel Prize for Physics for his explanation of the photoelectric effect in 1905 and “for his services to Theoretical Physics”. However, when Einstein was young, his parents thought he was mentally retarded. His grades in school were so poor that a teacher asked him to quit, saying, “Einstein, you will never amount to anything!”

In 1947, one year into her contract, Marilyn Monroe was dropped by 20th Century-Fox because her producer thought she was unattractive and could not act. That didn’t deter her at all! She kept on going and eventually she was recognized by the public as the 20th century’s most famous movie star, sex symbol and pop icon.

John Grisham’s first novel was rejected by sixteen agents and twelve publishing houses. He went on writing and writing until he became best known as a novelist and author for his works of modern legal drama. The media has coined him as one of the best novel authors even alive in the 21st century.

Henry Ford’s first two automobile companies failed That did not stop him from incorporating Ford Motor Company and being the first to apply assembly line manufacturing to the production of affordable automobiles in the world. He not only revolutionized industrial production in the United States and Europe, but also had such influence over the 20th century economy and society. His combination of mass production, high wages and low prices to consumers has initiated a management school known as “Fordism”. He became one of the three most famous and richest men in the world during his time.

Soichiro Honda was turned down by Toyota Motor Corporation during a job interview as “engineer” after World War Two. He continued to be jobless until his neighbours starting buying his “home-made scooters”. Subsequently, he set out on his own to start his own company. Honda. Today, the Company has grown to become the world’s largest motorcycle manufacturer and one of the most profitable automakers – beating giant automaker such as GM and Chrysler. With a global network of 437 subsidiaries, Honda develops, manufactures and markets a wide variety of products ranging from small general-purpose engines and scooters to specialty sports cars.

Akio Morita, founder of giant electric household products, Sony Corporation, first product was an electric rice cooker, only sold 100 cookers (because it burned rice rather than cooking). Today, Sony generates US$66 billion in revenue and ranked as the world’s 6th largest electronic and electrical company.

So, you want to be a manager? The following is a list of traits and skills required in a candidate to take full advantage of PGDM program and become an effective manager. Go through the list and attempt the questions after that and see how well can you fit into the shoes of a manager.

Time Management

Supervisory positions can be very stressful and overwhelming when specific deadlines need to be met. Leaders need to be able to handle tasks and assignments in a timely manner. Time is similar to finances and both need to be budgeted wisely.

Effective managers avoid being trapped by trivia. They struggle against perfectionist tendencies that can draw them into expending time on unimportant matters. They can distinguish between tasks that are truly important to getting the job done and those that are merely urgent. They organize their work so that they are not constantly putting out fires, but concentrate on achieving the most important mission goals. The key to effective prioritizing is the ability to organize and establishing priorities for the day is the universally accepted practice of the best managers.

Communication skills

Communication is fundamental in a any aspect of life, especially for management teams and among employees relations. Supervisors need to be capable of communicating clearly with fellow managers, employees, other businesses, and customers. Confidence and personality plays a major role in a manager’s ability to communicate. Managers should be experienced with speaking both to groups and individuals.

Many people think that managers are completely type-A personalities with analytical mindsets. However, Managers also need the type-B traits that help them work well with people, especially in regards to communication. The job of a Manager involves translating complicated ideas and instructions to teams of people, investors, and other department heads. Since the Manager may interact with a wide variety of people from different backgrounds, this can be a very daunting task!  While looking at the technical aspects of a job, the Manager will never forget about the human element and forget that people are the backbone of a company.

These are often the most talked about when it comes to leading or managing. It’s essential for a manager to have good communication skills, both written and verbal, to be able to manage effectively. In every aspect of being a good manager, communication plays a major role.

Listening skills are yes, a part of communication. Whatever knowledge a manager possesses or the domain expertise he has, to put his knowledge into practice, it needs to be shared. And that again demands communication skills. A good manager possesses an optimistic attitude and has motivating abilities. Listening skills and concern for his people are among the other important traits.

Conflict Resolution

Conflict occurs just about every day in personal and career based environments. Managers need to be able to listen, identify an issue, agree on the issue, discuss solutions, agree on the solution, and follow up. He will be the liaison between the lower-level and upper-level employees. He will also serve as the mediator for disputes between lower-level employees. In order to be able to do this position well, the manager that you hire is going to have to be capable of handling conflicts in the office place. He needs to be someone who can spot problems as they form and nip them in bud as well as someone who can deal with bigger conflicts when they do arise.

Personal Traits

Managers are often valued for their creativity in coming up with new ideas and problem solving. However, this creativity always lies on a basis of common sense. The Manager will be able to look at all aspects of the company with objection and calculate whether plans are actually feasible or not. Anyone with experience in the field will agree that it isn’t enough to have knowledge-one must also have the basic sense to put that knowledge into practice. In the event of a problem, the Manager needs to have the cool mindset to quickly troubleshoot the problem. A calm manager will keep the entire office calm which will lead to increased productivity and a better workplace overall. This will ultimately grow your business.

managers must be able to quickly adjust, understanding the implications of the changes and adjusting goals and strategies accordingly. An adaptable manager sets an example to his/her employees and leads the way in demonstrating new ways of working and/or behaving.

To be a good and effective manager, one must be able to maintain his temperamental balance at all times.Anyone can obtain the organization chart, but what is more useful for any manager is to understand  the real network within the business. Who are the key people that can make things happen? It’s about understanding who affect the decisions you make today and in the future, and ensuring you have a good relationship with them.

Goal setting

Goal setting goes hand-in-hand with time management. Managers need to manage their time wisely and focus on specific goals. Managers also need to be able to assign certain tasks to employees by giving them a goal as well.

Objective Views

Managers need to remain objective towards their employees, fellow managers, customers, and their own personal work. A manager should not be bias towards a certain group or person. He/she should always remain non-judgmental and give everyone a chance to prove themselves, Having a ‘’favorite’’ employee should not happen because it’s not fair to other employees. Managers should also be able to remember that you should view staff members and customers in a professional manager rather than as a close personal friend.

Self-Motivation

The person that you hire for the job has to be capable of doing the job without needing you to look over her shoulder all of the time. This individual needs to be capable of understanding the basic goals of the business and developing her own strategies for achieving those goals. She needs to be committed to putting her all into the job every day without the close supervision of a boss.

Great Customer Service Skills

No matter what type of business you are in, you can benefit from having a manager who is excellent in dealing with customers and clients. Ultimately this may not be a large percentage of the manager’s job since tha daily tasks of customer service will fall to other employees. However, when problems arise with customers, the manager is the one who has the potential to diffuse the situation or to exacerbate it. You want to hire a manager who is going to be capable of making even the most difficult customers happy so that you can retain customers and the business can grow.

Being a Team Player

The manager has to be someone who is committed to working with a team of people for the improvement of the whole business. This means that the manager isn’t in the business solely for the selfish reasons of ‘’getting ahead’’ instead, he is interested in growing the business because it is going to be to his benefit as well as to the benefit of the other people working with him in the company. A manager is a middle-man who has to work with both the upper-level bosses and the lower-level employees so it’s highly important that this person is really a team player.

The ability to do it now

At least 80% of the things coming over the desks of most managers can and should be handled immediately. Effective managers toss it into the round file if it’s not useful, delegate it if appropriate, or do it themselves, as soon as possible, if necessary. Indecision and unwillingness to take calculated risks and fast, reasoned action are traits sure to block the career advancement of managers, and a tendency to procrastinate can be a managers career advancement death knell. Indecision and procrastination are the biggest thieves of time and among the most serious impediments to successful functioning.

The ability to delegate effectively

This is not easy for most managers, who want to do what they can do well. Many managers, especially early in their managerial careers, are more comfortable doing than they are managing especially since they were usually promoted up through the ranks because they were competent at their jobs. The effective manager sees that he/she has qualified people and selects an appropriate one for a given responsibility, delegates with clarity to ensure understanding, and follows up with regular progress reports, to make sure the intended results are achieved. Delegation must not be seen by employees as simply having an undesirable task dumped on them. The best managers use delegation both as a way to save his/her own time for other uses and as an invaluable tool for upgrading the skills of employees.

Intelligentsia

The very uncommon common sense is something that a manager should possess. A manager needs to have complete knowledge of his field and feel confident about what he knows. Thorough knowledge of one’s position and responsibilities is the trait of an effective manager. Intelligence is another characteristic of good managers. Having a witty sense of humor is an added advantage. They have it or they develop it, but once it’s there, it’s of great help in tackling difficult situations. A manager is needs to think out of the box! That’s what innovation is. A manager always aims at bringing reforms to his work patterns, adapt to change, experiment with his working style, come up with new schemes for business growth; Emotional intelligence is another important trait of a manager. It translates into understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of his team and a concern for their problems.

Willingness to expend time and effort on encouraging employees

Supporting subordinates is at the heart of managerial effectiveness. Yet, many managers find themselves too busy. Successful and effective managers know that they can only succeed when their employees succeed and that their own performance rating will be based on how well his/her work unit performs so a well, trained highly motivated set of employees is the requisite for success as a manager.

Acceptance of limitations on relationships with employees

Effective managers recognize the need for a kind of formality in relation to employees and the impossibility of being buddies with them. They accept the increased loneliness inherent in a manager’s position. They know that even having the appearance of being closer to one employee than to others, e.g. by socializing with them outside of business hours, or having lunch with the same employee every day, brings incrimination. The suspicion of having a pet is a morale buster. Group disintegration is a real possibility when there develops an in-group of people the boss spends time with and an out-group whose members feel they are being neglected.

Strict adherence to policies of fairness

in reviewing and assessing employees’ performance, in considering the assignment of tasks, in administering discipline and in all other matters, the effective manager bases his/her judgment on objective observation and is totally impartial and scrupulously fair. In order to achieve such fairness the manager must be capable of objectively assessing performance and that means having objective, quantifiable data about each employee’s performance.

Integrity

Integrity fosters trust, which in turn builds. A manager with loyal staff has the capability to be very effective. They have staff that they know they can rely on and, in turn, their staff is confident in their abilities to deliver knowing they have the support of their manager.

Role Model

An effective manager sets an example, to all staff, of appropriate behavior and performance standards. It may seem obvious, but it is extremely difficult to expect others to behave in a particular way, if you yourself do not set such an example.

Value people above all else

A job well done is not about systems or processes or figures; it’s about people. An effective manager recognizes the importance of people in business, and shows everyone respects regardless of the role that they play. An effective manager listens to people; is fair and understanding. This doesn’t mean they can always keep everyone happy; because as a manager this simply isn’t the case, however if a decision is reached though a fair process people understand how the outcome was reached even if they don’t necessarily agree with result.