7 indispensable management skills of senior managers

Table Of Contents

Management skills are always an indispensable factor for any senior manager positions, helping to manage the business effectively and develop more sustainably. So, what management skills do senior managers need? Follow the following article of Navigos Search to find out the answer. 

1. Self-management skills

As the head of an organization, a senior manager must first know how to control the workload and personal life to have a stable work-life balance, always keep a cool head when you have to deal with any challenge or "vital" situations to make the wisest and most rational decision. 

Besides, you also have to constantly improve your management capacity, balance between work, your true self and your family; build the right relationships and proper leadership style. In order for employees to be satisfied and convinced, a senior manager must improve himself from skills to appearance, from the inside out.

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Management skills of senior managers

Management skills of senior managers

2. Strategic thinking and planning skills

The biggest difference between an executive and a manager is the strategic thinking and planning skills. When you are an executive, you always try to achieve the set KPIs, this is an example of a plan that your boss assigns to each individual to implement. As for senior managers, the requirements for strategic thinking skills are higher and they must have a longer-term vision.

Planning and strategic thinking will help managers outline the work that needs to be done to grow. Therefore, besides focusing on current tasks, you need to plan for the future. This means you'll have to set priorities that align with your business goals, review policies, and attend training to manage your team's operations.

To do that, you need to understand your mission, the overall development goals of the business, the goals of the department you are in charge of, etc. From human and financial resources, you will map specific plans. However, in reality, the plan will change continuously due to objective and subjective factors. But with clear strategic thinking, you will have a backup plan to adapt to these changes in a timely manner.

3. Managing and training skills

Next, you must have the skills of managing and training employees. Management skills include operating, organizing, delegating tasks  and planning general development strategies.

In addition, senior managers also play an important role in supporting and building training programs and improving professional capacity for their staff. 

You should share the knowledge, experience and skills needed to your team so they could perform better at work. From there, help them build confidence and maximize their personal capabilities to contribute to the sustainable development of the business.

Managing and training skills

Managing and training skills

4. Human resource management skills

Human resource management skills include knowledge, ability to manage people and harmonize relationships. Good human resource management skills will help senior managers connect employees into a solid network to accomplish common goals. Understanding your staff is like a "catalyst" that accelerates your path to senior leadership. In addition to motivating employees, the managers must divide and control human resources more professionally and effectively, avoiding employees' negligence and lack of enthusiasm at work, leading to the productivity reduction of the department. Therefore, HR management skills are important for all levels, not just for senior managers.

To acquire this skill, senior managers must constantly learn and improve their professional human resource management skills and also know how to "read" the staff's mind to understand them better. 
The management of the staff is extremely important to the overall development of an enterprise. Managers can arrange each employee in the right job position to promote their capacity well. On the contrary, if the task is assigned to the wrong person, it will cause losses in terms of work efficiency and the end result is to affect the process of achieving the common goal of the business. 

5. Communication, presentation and motivation skills

Senior managers have to work with many different parties, from employees to department heads, customers, partners, ... through many different forms such as via email, phone call or face-to-face meeting,... Therefore, ensuring clear and unambiguous communication is a necessary condition to reach.

Not only new managers need to hone their communication and presentation skills, but everyone should. Imagine how your co-workers would feel when you stammered, were not clear, or were unable to express your opinion?

Therefore, as a senior manager, communication skills are even more important because you often appear in public to present the development orientation of the business, deliver speeches on business operating plans, etc. You also play the role of a representative of  the business when working with premium partners. With good communication and presentation skills, a senior manager will have confidence, will be able to  show professionalism and good persuasion in negotiating deals.

Besides, showing an open and positive attitude at work also helps a lot in creating a happy and healthy working environment. This skill requires a senior manager to have sophistication, flexibility in knowledge and experience. From there, making it easy to work and exchange information with your employees. At the same time, a senior manager also has to motivate and ignite the fire of enthusiasm and dedication to each employee.

6. Decision-making, task delegation and work progress tracking skills

Decision making is a very important part of a manager's scope of work. The higher the level of management, the greater the influence of the decision. One right decision will bring great success, but only one wrong decision can lead to the failure of the project. A senior manager must take responsibility for every decision made and be willing to take responsibility for it.

To make the right decision, you need to practice a lot of other skills such as: Analytical skills, handling situations, problem solving, critical thinking, etc. By improving yourself, you will limit the chances of making wrong decisions or mistakes and have a strong mentality when facing all challenges and decisions.

A senior manager needs to recognize and properly assess the capacity of each employee to have appropriate development orientation, reasonable tasks delegation and help employees maximize their strengths. From there, improve productivity and work efficiency.

Delegation is not about handing over all the responsibilities or letting employees do it at will. In the process of assigning tasks, a senior manager must strictly control the employee's work process to promptly support and "remove" problems that arise.

Task delegation & management skill of a senior manager

Task delegation & management skill of a senior manager

7. Time management skills

When you are an executive, you will only care about how to get the job done in 8 hours. However, holding the position of a senior manager, time management is no longer an individual problem but must be placed in a collective context.

Without good time management skills, you will waste your own time and affect many others. Therefore, a senior manager needs to know how to arrange a reasonable time for both himself and his subordinates, clearly identify important tasks, prioritize to complete them first to meet deadlines, and avoid overlapping and overloaded.

Hopefully the information about the 7 indispensable management skills of senior managers that Navigos Search shared above will be useful to you. Hone your skills every day to be ready for a promotion to a senior manager when the opportunity arises!

If you are looking for a management position, do not hesitate to contact Navigos Search experts to receive the most useful advice and consultancy.

Navigos Search is the leading mid- and senior-level personnel recruitment agency in Vietnam, with a team of highly qualified, professional and experienced consultant experts in the industry. Each team will be in charge of a separate rank, helping you find the most suitable job position and working environment. 

Navigos Search - The number 1 recruitment company for mid-level and senior-level personnel in Vietnam

Besides, during the probationary process, you are also accompanied by Navigos Search experts to promptly solve arising problems and get the most useful advice. To expand your opportunity to join the senior manager team, please contact Navigos Search's expert team at the head office in Ho Chi Minh City or the Hanoi branch.

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