As you navigate the corporate landscape in a leadership position, developing management skills is a crucial part of the process. As an executive coach, I’ve worked with many leaders, helping them nurture their strengths and address areas of improvement.
When you’re in a leadership position, you have an opportunity to make a real impact on the people you lead and manage. Empowering and inspiring those around you is one of the most rewarding parts of the job. Having the right executive leadership skills means you’re able to lead successfully and benefit everyone around you with the job at hand.
But what makes a truly successful leader, and which skills are most sought out by the world’s best companies? As a certified coach with over 20 years of corporate experience in leading global organizations, I’ll share everything you need to know!
What are the Top People Management Skills for Leaders?
It’s necessary to possess both hard skills and soft skills for managers and leaders. Hard skills are specific, teachable abilities or expertise that are easily quantifiable, such as programming, financial analysis, or foreign language proficiency. Soft skills are interpersonal attributes and personal traits that enhance your professional interactions, job performance, and career prospects, like communication, teamwork, and problem-solving. When you hone in on your people management and emotional intelligence, you can foster stronger connections with colleagues and clients alike.
Here are some of the most essential people management skills for strong leaders:
Communication
One of the most valuable executive leadership skills is communication, by far! However, communicating effectively takes time to develop. Make an effort to practice active listening to really pay attention to what your team has to say. Feeling heard is so important, especially when your team might feel like their ideas or concerns aren’t being addressed. Share information with your team regularly and concisely, and encourage an open line of communication.
Accountability
Taking responsibility for your own actions at work goes both ways for executive leaders and their teams. Accountability builds trust and support as you all work toward the shared mission of the company. If you make a bad call, owning up to it means you hold yourself accountable for your mistakes. No one is perfect, and you earn respect from your team by admitting that something didn’t go as expected. This sets an excellent example for your team to hold themselves accountable and do their part as well.
Conflict Resolution
As a leader, dealing with difficult people and different leadership styles can happen regularly, leading to uncomfortable conflicts within the workplace. Having the people management skills to prevent the escalation of these situations allows you to focus on the issue at hand instead of blaming others. The key is to remain calm and find ways to collaborate with your team to come to a solution that works for everyone.
Trust
Building trust with your team when you’re in an executive position is key. You need to trust your team members, and they should also trust you. Micro-managing and constant supervision might make your team feel like you don’t trust them and their capabilities. They know what’s expected of them, so you should trust them to do their job effectively. As you delegate different tasks and responsibilities, place trust in employees that you know are well-equipped with the task at hand.
Patience
When it comes to soft skills for managers and executives, patience is a skill you might think you have mastered until you run into a situation where it’s truly tested. When you’re faced with a stressful situation, the last thing you want to do is lose your cool around your team. Being a patient leader inspires your team to have a more positive attitude during challenging moments.
Empathy
An empathetic leader must show compassion for their colleagues. The goal is to find the right balance between showing empathy and communicating clear expectations for the team. When you care about your team’s concerns, they’ll be more appreciative and give their best effort. Understanding that challenges outside of work exist for your team and empathizing with their situation goes a long way.
Motivation
Leaders with a strong ability to motivate can drive ongoing improvement, find better solutions, and encourage others to always give it their all. Developing management skills backed by motivating your team results in a positive company culture and a thriving workplace. Leadership and motivation go hand in hand as you lead by example and give praise to highlight a job well done.
Emotional Intelligence
When you have the ability to understand and manage your emotions as well as those around you, you’ve reached peak emotional intelligence. As one of the most important people management skills, this is how you collaborate with others, handle stressful situations, and offer feedback to your team. Hone in on your self-awareness, pay attention to social cues, and relationship management.
Strengthen Your Executive Skills and Become an Impactful Leader
Striving to be the best leader you can be takes hard work and determination. You might not have all your executive leadership skills perfected when taking on a new position (and that’s okay!). Developing management skills helps you not only achieve organizational goals but also inspire and motivate those around you to achieve their personal and professional goals as well. As you commit to this journey of growth, remember that the most successful leaders are those who continuously seek to improve themselves and their teams.
Let’s unlock your highest potential as an executive leader! Book a complimentary 1-hour exploratory session to learn more about how executive coaching can help you evolve into an impactful leader.
