Do you find it hard to connect with your subordinates?

Many managers/leaders find it hard to establish a connection with their subordinates. Connection means establishing a rapport wherein a manager/leader will have a healthy relationship with his people. where there is no barrier that impedes the flow of formal and informal communication between the manager and his subordinates. And if there is no barrier there is a smooth flow of communication that will result to an open and dynamic organizational environment.

How will a manager/leader establish a healthy connection with his subordinates? Here are three for your consideration:

1   1.) He should reach out to his subordinates – Reach out means that he should find time to mingle and talk with them. He should initiate the conversation and not wait for his subordinates to initiate it. If the manager/leader initiates the conversation it shows his humility and willingness to build bridge with his subordinates.

2    2.) He should learn their topics of interest - This means that if your subordinates love to talk about current movies by all means try to learn more about current movies. So that you will have a natural conversation with them.  If their interest is about God and strengthening of family values try to learn about these topics as well. In other words a manager/leader who desires to connect will not hesitate to walk the extra mile to achieve his objective/s.

3    3.)  He should learn to use simple language – This means that you should use simple and easy to understand words. It’s a mistake for a manager/leader to use complicated and hard to understand words, for the reason that this would create an environment of aloofness and egotism.

If you know how to connect with your subordinates you can easily communicate to them your ideas, visions and goals for your organization. – Marino J. Dasmarinas 

The connection between humility and effective Leadership

Does humility have a role to play in effective leadership? Yes it does, for without humility there would be no effective leadership. Just imagine a leader who assumes and boasts that he knows it all. How would he be perceived by his followers/subordinates?

He surely would be perceived as arrogant and full of himself by his followers and by that perception the leader doesn’t earn the respect of his followers. And when a leader doesn’t earn the respect of his followers/subordinates there will eventually be a failure of leadership.

When a leader is humble he is always open to listen, always open to learning, to suggestion and so forth. He always creates a welcoming atmosphere in his organization where everyone is encouraged to talk and speak for the good of the organization.

Many leaders are afraid to engage humility in their leadership style because they think that this would weaken their position of leadership. On the contrary humility strengthens the position of leadership for the simple reason that it encourage participation and openness.

It opens the doors and windows of the organization and the position of leadership to fresh ideas and insights. – Marino J. Dasmarinas   

Are you an effective leader?

What defines an effective leader? An effective leader is someone who is followed, respected and obeyed by his subordinates. He very seldom employs fear as a vehicle for him to be followed, respected and obeyed. He simply uses simple yet effective leadership skills to influence and transform his subordinates.

For example, if a leader tells his subordinates to do or follow a certain organizational procedure or method. An effective leader should not simply be satisfied with telling them he should also be the first to lead the way for them.

He should not delegate this responsibility to somebody else no matter how busy his schedules are. He should find time and lead the way himself so that he/she will earn their respect.

Many leaders fail to inspire and influence their subordinates because they love to delegate and they don’t walk their talk. If this is the scenario there would be a failure of leadership for the simple reason that leadership is not about delegation of functions. 

Leadership is all about inspiring and transforming people, it’s about making them think that they could do things positively and effectively. All of these can be done by an effective leader.

Are you an effective leader? – Marino J. Dasmarinas 

I provide Lectures/Talks on Motivation, Leadership, Values and other topics under Organizational Behavior.

I provide Lectures/Talks on Motivation, Leadership, Values and other topics under Organizational Behavior. For more details please get in touch at: mjdasma@yahoo.com, mjdasma@gmail.com.

Tel no. 046-4303668

Ineffective managers vs. Effective managers

Aside from resignation could there be an instance when a manager is not a manager anymore? Yes! There are many instances when a manager is not a manager anymore. We all know that a manager is somebody who is in control of an office. Thus, he/she is the head of the office and every major decision emanates from him/her.

When does it become that an active manager is not a manager anymore or a manager in name only? It’s when there is no semblance of order and discipline in his/her office. It’s when his/her subordinates don’t respect him/her anymore. It’s when he/she fails to achieve the designated targets and objectives of his/her office. Therefore these kind of managers are incompetent or ineffective managers already.

Active or effective managers are those who create a culture of order and discipline in his/her office. This doesn’t mean that he would impose a military type of culture and discipline. But he should always see to it that order and discipline is always a pervading presence in the office that he holds. Thus he/she could do this by leadership by example. If the manager wants order and discipline he/she must first be an epitome of order and discipline otherwise there surely will be a failure of discipline.

Active or effective managers are those who are always respected by his/her subordinates. We all know that respect is always earned, it’s never given freely. Therefore if a manager wants respect from his/her people he/she should be competent in his/her job. It means that he/she should exert effort to know his/her job and it does not end by knowing his/her job alone.

He/she should also know the job of his/her subordinates. How could he/she effectively manage his/her office if the job that he/she only knows is his/her own job only? How could he/she earn the respect of his subordinates if he/she doesn’t know what they are doing?

Active or effective managers are those who always achieve or even exceed the designated targets and objectives of his/her office. This he/she could do best by harnessing the tools of management such as Planning, Organizing, Leading and Controlling.

Are you an Ineffective manager or an effective manager? – Marino J. Dasmarinas

Effective leaders always look at the big picture and not their own pictures alone

Santiago is the owner of a small sized business that grew big. When he was asked about the secret of his success, he simply said, I am a team player I don’t make organizational decisions by myself. I encourage everyone in my organization to contribute their idea/s.  I look at it and consider some of the useful ones and it somehow forms part of my decision making.

There are leaders who make decisions by themselves alone and they don’t care to solicit their subordinate’s ideas. When a leader is like this he alienates his subordinates, he treats them as his subject and him their master.

So what normally happens to this autocratic style of leadership? After a period of time the leader fails to effectively exercise his leadership and then the organization that he leads becomes a failure also.

Why is there a failure of leadership? There is a failure of leadership for the simple reason that the leader looked at his own picture alone. In other words like a dictator he makes decisions by himself alone. His mindset was already conditioned to consider nobody but his own ideas which at all times is always biased to him.

A good and effective leader is someone who always looks at the big picture hence he is a democratic leader. He considers the ideas of his subordinates and he allows his subordinates to flourish and grow. He solicits their ideas before making decisions. What is always in his mind is the well being of the entire organization and not his own selfish welfare only.

Are you a leader who always looks at the big picture? – Marino J. Dasmarinas  

Your recruitment is the catalyst for growth in your organization

Why is it that there is a preconceived notion that the human resource of private organization is more superior to the human resource of government organization?  The difference lies in recruitment.

Private organizations most especially the competitive ones source their human resource from a competitive pool of people. They advertise and those who are initially qualified pass through several stages of interviews and examinations before they are hired.  Their employment is solely based on competence and what they could bring in to the organization.

On the other hand government organizations generally source their need for human resource from within the circle of people who are employed in their organization. For example, an employee is hired in a government office because he/she is the son, daughter or relative of a current employee.

Because of his/her connections this future government employee will not anymore pass through the selection process.  She/he will not be interviewed anymore, she/he will not go through the process of competitive written examination. Or if he/she goes through the selection process (interview, written exam and medical examination etc…) it would just be for formality.  

So what happen to this government organization? Its efficiency is affected; it cannot fully deliver the expected competitive service. And who suffers from this flawed government recruitment method? It’s the concerned government office and the people that it serves.  

There is also a preconceived notion that there’s a wide gap that exists as to the behavior and competitiveness between employees of private vis-a-vis government organizations. Employees of private organization would normally work harder and they are more competitive because of the stringent selection process.  

Therefore, if you want your human resource to effectively deliver in your organization. Recruit those who are fully qualified. Not based on whom they know or based on their connection in the office. But based on what they know and what they can positively contribute to your organization. – Marino J. Dasmarinas