Making Management Simple: A Practical Handbook for Dealing with Everyday Management Challenges

241 Pages·2005·7.742 MB·English

by  Frances Kay, Helen Guinness, Nicola Stevens

Making Management
Simple
'I read Making Management Simple and thought it was
excellent... I am a great believer in the importance of
getting the simple things right. The book ought to be widely
used as the starting point for any management course and
virtually anyone starting a job of any kind.'
Bruce Lloyd, Professor of Strategic Management,
London South Bank University
'This book is any easy read. It is a management course
in iteself. It should be essential reading for any supervisor
or new manager.'
Martyn Hurd, Company Trustee for ITN Pensions and
Finance Director of the Broadcast Journalism
Training Council (BJTC)
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Making
Management
Simple
A practical handbook for
dealing with everyday
management challenges
Second edition
FRANCES KAY, HELEN GUINNESS
AND NICOLA STEVENS
HOWTOBOOKS
Published by How To Content,
A division of How To Books Ltd,
Spring Hill House, Spring Hill Road,
Begbroke, Oxford 0X5 1RX. United Kingdom.
Tel: [phone]. Fax: [phone].
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All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or stored in an information
retrieval system (other than for purposes of review) without the express permission of
the publisher in writing.

The right of Frances Kay, Helen Guinness and Nicola Stevens to be identified as the
authors of this work has been asserted by them in accordance with the Copyright,
Designs and Patents Act 1988.

© Copyright 2005 Frances Kay, Helen Guinness and Nicola Stevens

First published in paperback 2003
Second edition 2005
First published in electronic form 2007

ISBN: 978 1 84803 077 0

Produced for How To Books by Deer Park Productions, Tavistock, Devon, UK
Typeset by Kestrel Data, Exeter, UK
Cover design by Baseline Arts Ltd, Oxford, UK

NOTE: The material contained in this book is set out in good faith for general guidance
and no liability can be accepted for loss or expense incurred as a result of relying in
particular circumstances on statements made in the book. The laws and regulations are
complex and liable to change, and readers should check the current position with the
relevant authorities before making personal arrangements.
Contents
Preface vii
Foreword by Patrick Forsyth ix
Introduction: Management in the 21st Century 1
Management overload 1
Management magic 7
Focusing on key issues 9
1 Getting and Keeping Yourself Organised 13
Productivity 14
Time management 15
Ten aids to reducing stress 32
Summary 32
2 Being Effective 34
Defining your job and its role 36
Focusing on the job in hand and results 44
Problem-solving - taking the drama out of a crisis 54
Summary 57
3 Recruiting and Selecting the Right People 58
Defining the job to be done 59
Specifying the profile of the candidate 60
Attracting the right person 61
A systematic approach to interviewing 65
Final selection and appointment 69
4 Managing People 72
Delegation 73
How to delegate 79
V
vi / MAKING MANAGEMENT SIMPLE
Performance appraisals 84
Conducting the interview 87
In Summary 90
5 Getting the Most from People 92
The fundamentals of motivation 93
Producing positive results 104
Involving people 107
Aiming for excellence 115
6 Taking Responsibility for Communication 116
Making an impact 116
Impact and communication 121
Use of energy 131
Listening skills 135
Directing a communication 142
Presentation skills awareness 145
7 Change Management 153
Recognising the need for change 155
Taking a positive view 158
Managing the progress of projects 167
Summary 174
8 Defusing Difficulties 175
The roots of internal barriers 176
Handling questions, objections and awkward
situations 182
The art of creating rapport 188
9 Encouraging Creativity 196
Building creativity into management 198
Realising and driving ideas for excellence 208
Active team dynamics 211
Summary 219
Afterword 221
Index 227
Preface
We are excited about this second edition of Making
Management Simple. Why? Because when we learned about
it we realized this proves our theory and the feedback we've
received from other people. The problem we found with
many management books was that they're full of jargon,
buzzwords, hype and theory. For many readers this can be
difficult to follow. Their content is often hard to implement,
as well as being confusing. Our book offers an alternative:
something rather more straightforward, a useful, no-
nonsense management handbook in easy to read style.
Don't for one moment imagine that we're saying effective
management is easy. It is not, and never will be. On the
other hand, in part, the book is simple because it uses
common language throughout. We have tried to write about
a difficult subject using a strategic approach that emphasises
good communication and clarity of purpose. Its aim is to
help you, the reader, learn management techniques that
promote a sense of inclusion and empowerment at all levels
in the workplace.
In this revised edition we have included highlighted tips,
points to note and added inspiring quotes to draw the
reader's attention to the most important aspects of the topic
vii
viii / MAKING MANAGEMENT SIMPLE
being discussed. The essence of Making Management Simple
lies in the simplicity of implementing the skills and tech-
niques. It is about a consistent approach and style from the
top.
The recurrent feedback on the book shows that highly ex-
perienced managers have found it a breath of fresh air and
stimulated their leadership ability. It has given them an
opportunity to review their management style in the modern
business world. For those recent arrivals to managerial status
it has been enlightening as they progress into more senior
management roles. Organisations have reported to us that it
has contributed to a happier corporate culture, better team-
work and improved staff morale.
The problem in my life and other people's lives is not the
absence of knowing what to do, but the absence of doing it!
Peter Drucker
We hope you will enjoy this revised edition with its practical
approach to meeting management challenges.
Frances Kay, Helen Guinness and Nicola Stevens
Foreword
by Patrick Forsyth
Opening another book about how to manage people might
prompt the exclamation 'not ANOTHER one!' What can
one say? Well, quite a bit in this case, as this one is special. I
would describe it as an antidote to over-hyped management
theory.
Management is easy. It consists of little more than sitting in
an ivory tower, issuing instructions and keeping an eye open
to see if people need chasing to be sure they are executing
them properly. Or so it may seem.
Of course management is, in fact, no easy task and it can
prove downright difficult, especially if the overall business
or organisational climate in which it is practised is under
pressure in any way.
A simple definition will help to set the scene. Management
describes the process of achieving results through other
people - your people are largely instrumental in your
achieving your results. This is different from your doing
things for them and it is inherent to the process that
management should add to what others would otherwise do
ix