The Exceptional Manager Chapter 1

1.2 Six Challenges To Being A Star Manager CHALLENGE #1: MANAGING FOR COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE—STAYING AHEAD OF RIVALS Competitive advantage is the ability of an organization to produce goods or services more efficiently than competitors do, thereby outperforming them

1.2 Six Challenges To Being A Star Manager CHALLENGE #2: MANAGING FOR DIVERSITY-THE FUTURE WON’T RESEMBLE THE PAST In the future, managers will be challenged to maximize the contributions of employees that are diverse in gender, age, race, and ethnicity

1.2 Six Challenges To Being A Star Manager CHALLENGE #3: MANAGING FOR GLOBALIZATION—THE EXPANDING MANAGEMENT UNIVERSE Managing for globalization is a complex, ongoing challenge It is important for managers to understand how cultural differences affect an organization

1.2 Six Challenges To Being A Star Manager CHALLENGE #4: MANAGING FOR INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY Managing the Internet (the global network of independently operating but interconnected computers, linking hundreds of thousands of smaller networks around the world) is perhaps the biggest information technology challenge for managers

1.2 Six Challenges To Being A Star Manager CHALLENGE #5: MANAGING FOR ETHICAL STANDARDS Pressure to meet sales, production, and other targets can create ethical dilemmas for managers CHALLENGE #6: MANAGING FOR YOUR OWN HAPPINESS AND LIFE GOALS Managers need to consider whether meeting the organization’s challenges is also personally fulfilling

1.5 Roles Managers Must Play Successfully To be successful, managers must be able to play three roles: Interpersonal roles (figurehead, leader, and liaison) involve managers interacting with people inside and outside their work units Informational roles (monitor, disseminator, and spokesperson) require managers to receive and communicate information Decisional roles (entrepreneur, disturbance handler, resource allocator, and negotiator) require managers to make decisions to solve problems or take advantage of opportunities

1.6 The Entrepreneurial Spirit Entrepreneurship is the process of taking risks to create a new enterprise An entrepreneur is someone who sees a new opportunity for a product or service and launches a business to try to realize it An intrapreneur is someone who works inside an existing organization who sees an opportunity for a product or service and mobilizes the organization’s resources to try to realize it Lecture Note: Many students will probably know someone who has started a small business. Ask students to describe the management qualities of these individuals and how they’ve helped the entrepreneurs become successful. Then consider companies like Google and what makes those companies phenomenally successful.

1.6 The Entrepreneurial Spirit How Do Entrepreneurs & Managers Differ? Entrepreneurs start businesses, managers grow or maintain businesses Both entrepreneurs and managers -have a high need for achievement -believe in personal control of destiny -have high energy levels and an action orientation -have a high tolerance for ambiguity

1.7 The Skills Star Managers Need Good managers need to have technical skills -the ability to perform a specific job conceptual skills -the ability to think analytically and human skills -the ability to interact with others Today, companies want managers with -the ability to motivate and engage others -the ability to communicate -work experience outside the U.S. -the energy to meet the demands of global travel and a 24/7 world Lecture Note: Ask students to list specific skills that a good manager should have, then have the students categorize them into technical, conceptual, and human skills.

What Companies Look for in Managers Skills are more or less important at different levels of management: Technical skills are the ability to apply the specialized procedures, techniques, and knowledge required to get the job done. Technical skills are most important for lower level managers, because these managers supervise the workers who produce products or serve customers. Team leaders and first-line managers need technical knowledge and skills to train new employees and help employees solve problems. Technical skills become less important as managers rise through the managerial ranks, but they are still important. Human skills, the ability to work well with others, are equally important at all levels of management, from first-line supervisors to CEOs. However, because lower level managers spend much of their time solving technical problems, upper level managers may actually spend more time dealing directly with people. Conceptual skills are the ability to see the organization as a whole, how the different parts of the company affect each other, and how the company fits into or is affected by its external environment. Conceptual skill increases in importance as managers rise through the management hierarchy. Managers typically have a stronger motivation to manage than their subordinates, and managers at higher levels usually have stronger motivation to manage than managers at lower levels. Furthermore, managers with stronger motivation to manage are promoted faster, are rated by their employees as better managers, and earn more money than managers with a weak motivation to manage. 5