What is a Successful Manager?

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What is a Successful Manager?

When can a person reasonably be considered a successful manager?
From the company's point of view, it is a matter of performance management and KPIs. And there are countless articles on skills / traits managers should have.

But when is a person successful as a manager from his/her own, personal perspective? The answer depends perhaps on what is driving that person; what are his/her goals, values, needs, preferences, and identity.

We might use Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs to illustrate the above.
For example, to some people success can be defined in FINANCIAL terms. A large salary and/or considerable savings provide safety, comfort and status.
For others, their professional achievements or standing/STATUS is most important. Are you a junior, senior, team, general or group manager?
And for others their PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT or self-actualization is what matters most.
While to some, the CONTRIBUTION they make (to their family, organization they work in, country, or humanity in general) is most important.

See also Drivers and Levers of Employees.

Note that above categories and measures of success are not mutually exclusive and can be combined. Even if in reality they sometimes (seem to) conflict with each other.

⇒ When are YOU successful as a manager? Take some time to think it over. You are the only one who can give the answer.

		Comments by date▼ Comments by rating Rating
		-3 Javier Elenes Business Consultant, Mexico
	A Simple Way to Rate if You are a Successful Manager Rate the contribution you made to results. That means created value (Market Value and Economic Value) to the business unit that you manage in GREEN, YELLOW, RED: Mark with GREEN if your results are ABOVE the media of the industry. Mark with YELLOW if your results are IN de media of the industry. And mark RED if your results are BELOW the media of the industry. ONLY GREEN managers are sucessful managers. The YELLOW managers are mediocre managers. The RED managers are incompetent managers.

		5 eduardo oliva Professor, Mexico
	What a Successful Manager is A successful manager would be an individual who consistently achieves his/her company's objectives, in a wide variety of situations, and within a well defined social, economic and technological environment, while preserving (or enlarging) the company's assets. A universally and eternally successful manager could not possibly be a human being.

		4 Gregory Johnson Coach, United States
	Successful Manager/Leader I realize success through a PSYCHOLOGICAL AND PHYSICAL RELIEF upon completion or reaching a milestone throughout the execution of duties or accomplishments. I generally look at Maslow's hierarchy as a perspective theory that I invert. When the pyramid is inverted, I see my responsibilities as I look up versus the traditional looking down. I have problems with the concept of hierarchical management & leadership in a time when the new generation of workers are seeking a more collegial work setting. As such, I have been promoting a more horizontal (flat) than vertical managerial/leadership engaging style of management.

		1 Paramathmuni srinivas Kumar India
	2 Aspects of a Successful Manager Success can be defined as achievement of A STATE OF BEING WITH 2 ASPECTS in a personality. For example, effective teaching cannot happen unless and until the teacher develops both the learning aspect and the teaching aspect in him. Similarly, a successful manager is a well developed state of two aspects in the same personality. These states are: 1. The limited consciousness of being is merged with a universal consciousness (unified field). 2. A state of mind which is relentlessly and ever ready in pursuit of success. The degree of development of these two sides of personality is the measure of success of an individual who manages an enterprise. It becomes the foundation wherein all skills, traits, financial gains are achieved.

		4 Sridhar Gopal Management Consultant, India
	Success - Value Driven Managerial Actions Interesting question. In my terms success is when your "thoughts meet your actions at the same point". In other words when thoughts meet reality. For a manager success can be either managerial or personal or both. Say a new HR manager is brought in with a task on hand to bring down a high rate of attrition in the company. He may be successful in slowing down the employee exit with a “carrot and a stick” approach, by doing this the management may find the manager “successful”. On the other hand, when the manager understands the reasons for attrition through deliberations with the employees and prepares a total solution package and agrees with the upper management for a win - win solution and brings both the employees and the upper management at a point of congruence of acceptance, I find professional goals and personal values meet at a common point. And this I would term this as a “managerial success”.

		8 MUNI DAVE Business Consultant, India
	Criteria for a Successful Manager I measure the success of a manager on following criteria: Gives good performance, a little above target, most of the time. When below target, has adequate / objective justification. Is a good trainer. Develops juniors in all aspects - technical, system, attitudes, emotions, etc. Delegates many routine activities, remains a little underloaded. When a junior comes for a solution, motivates to find a better solution, instead of giving a quick decision. Takes ownership of departmental failures and gives credit of success to juniors. When s/he remains absent, department works smoothly. Ready to accept new responsibilities, challenging work. Doesn't link salary with performance. Maintains transparency. Is respected by other functions as well.

		2 MARZOUK Student (MBA), Morocco
	The Good Manger The good manager who succeeds, far from the financial considerations and KPIs is the one who ensures the succession by transmitting his know-how and experience.

		0 Anthony Manager, Nigeria
	What a Successful Manager Is. A successful manager is conceptualized as one who is able and capable of utilizing the various roles of management effectively without any intermittency, ensuring that the organization attains maximum...

		1 AQEEL RAZA Accountant, Pakistan
	What is a Successful Manager? The term “Manager” refers to the person managing the work of some given task which could help achieve the objectives of the company. The objectives of any company are to earn income and the process of...

		3 nabil abed alrahman HR Consultant, Palestine, State of
	A Successful Manager A successful manager is one who can gain the confidence of others and enhance their confidence in themselves and then lead them to the goals....

		2 Monchal, France
	A Good Manager Brings 'Human Value' Interesting topic and contributions thank you very much. I would say that a good manager is a person who helps his team to grow, I mean in term of hard and soft skills as well as in term of motivatio...

		1 Oshun, Grace Okaima Lecturer, Nigeria
	Traits of a Successful Manager A successful manager would be one who possesses leadership qualities. The workforce should be able to look up to him as a guide, a motivator and mentor. He should possess good people skills. He must b...

		4 Daniel Schneider Business Consultant, United States
	A Successful Manager's Definition of Success is Rooted in her/his Values Having studied people and motivation for most of my life, I always enjoy reading about what's new. When I first entered the workforce in 1971, people (mostly my chronological peers) were talking about...

		2 Aurore Director, Haiti
	The Succesful Manager Feeds the People I'm working as a Dean of a university in Haiti. Following my thesis in education science, I implemented an innovative master's program for teachers with experiences and without diplomas. Through all c...

		2 Maurice Hogarth Consultant, United Kingdom
	Being a Successful Manager What it means to be a successful managers depends on whether you wish to be assessed as “successful” by others or by yourself. Your external assessment by others is most likely to be based on your “s...

		3 Lisa Manager, Kenya
	2 Perspectives on What is a Successful Manager Having gone through the above reactions, I am a persuaded that there are 2 perceptions or perspectives of what makes a successful manager: INTERNAL: The Maslow hierarchy of needs could be a good ...

		1 g nyamudandara Zimbabwe
	The Successful Manager Understands the capabilities of employees and utilizes them wisely. A successful manager knows the right tools of trade for effective production and delivers. Targets are evaluated and has a personali...

		2 Gregory Johnson Coach, United States
	The Successful Manager/Leader Appreciates, Trusts and Empowers Employees I agree with our member from Zimbabwe. The trust and empowerment of those we manage is critical to success. The Maslow theory does not specifically point to traits such as trust and empowerment or dev...