Development of Managerial Skills
Experience and education—including formal training—are both important for the development of management skills. You can learn managerial concepts from a book, or lecture, and then apply them using the general learning model: (1) conceptual information and behavioral guidelines, (2) conceptual information demonstrated by examples, (3) skill-development exercises, (4) feedback on skill utilization, or performance, from others, and (5) frequent practice of what you have learned, including making adjustments from feedback.
The Managers as an Integrator of Five Mind-Sets
Gosling and Mintzberg believe that managers need to synthesize five different mind-sets
or perspectives at the same time. Each mind-set is association with one of the five key tasks of managers.
1. Managing Self:
The Reflective Mind-Set. Managers need to stop and think about what they are doing, so they can understand the meaning of their actions.
2. Managing Organizations: The Analytical Mind-Set. A manager cannot get
organized without analysis, particularly in a large company.
3. Managing Context:
The Worldly Mind-Set. An effective manager understands the
context, or culture and environment, in which decisions are to be made and actions
taken.
4. Managing Relationships:
The Collaborative Mind-Set. The effective manager must
manage relationships between and among people.
5. Managing Change:
The Action Mind-Set. The effective manager makes changes
when necessary, but also recognizes that continuity is important.
The successful manager weaves the five mind-sets together to achieve the best result
in a given situation.
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