Causes and Consequences of an Ineffective Manager

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Managers play a critical role in an organization. An effective manager should posses a mix of skills and competencies, such as interpersonal skills, communication and conflict-management skills, and leadership skills. Due to the diversity of employees, managers must also have a basic understanding of how individuals thrive in the organization to be able to inspire them to work harder. An ineffective manager lacks the ability to bring out the best in employees, leading to poor performance.

Poor Time Management

Managers who cannot manage time well are often ineffective. Time is a fixed resource; it is therefore important to schedule tasks effectively. Managers should differentiate between important and trivial activities. Most managers who slug it out for long hours are assumed to be industrious, yet they are wasting their time on unimportant activities, such as typing memos. This is the duty of the secretaries.

Inadequate Training

Another reason why some managers are ineffective is because they may be poorly trained or skilled. Management is an art that takes time and education to perfect. Managers who possess inadequate skills in various aspects of management, such as communication skills, tend to fare badly in their jobs. Highly educated managers also command respect among their juniors and peers. As a result, their directives and opinions are held in high esteem, and they are in a better position to implement the goals of the organization.

Poor Communication Skills

Communication is the process by which we consign and convey meaning in an attempt to create mutual understanding between the participants. Effective communication occurs only when the listener clearly understands the intended message. An ineffective manager cannot communicate his vision and goals to his juniors due to poor choice of communication channel, linguistic barriers or his emotional state of mind.

Decline in Motivation

Motivation to work refers to internal forces within the individual that push him to perform his duties and obligations without being coerced to do so. Employers should always hire effective managers to energize their staff and motivate them to perform their tasks effectively. When a manager becomes ineffective, employees lose the drive and energy to work, leading to a slump in the performance of the organization.

Increased Stress Levels

Ineffective managers are always under stress due to lateness, inability to meet deadlines, and countless complaints from superiors who are dissatisfied with their work. High stress levels divert such managers from concentrating on their work. This may lead to poor job performance, health problems and absenteeism.

Increased Labor Turnover

Ineffective managers may cause skilled employees to leave the company to search for fulfilling positions and jobs elsewhere. This deprives the organization of quality staff. This leads to further decline in production and profitability, which may result in the collapse of the organization if not corrected.