Effective management ensures a law firm or legal department runs smoothly. Good managers ensure their people have the resources and information they need to meet both internal and external deadlines, quality standards, and other requirements.
But while it is important to cultivate good management talent, a company’s investment in its managers should never stop with “competence.” Instead, managers should be inspired and encouraged to develop into leaders – a position from which they can then inspire and encourage their staff in turn.
How can a company determine if its managers are making the transition to effective leaders? Try asking the following questions:
Do our managers count value or create it?
Competent managers know how to measure the value that employees create, and they can manipulate and express the raw data in numerous ways to reveal various facts about the organization’s function and development as a whole. Every organization needs at least one person with these skills.
Leaders, however, can do more than add up the numbers. They know how to delegate and motivate employees so that more work gets done in the same amount of time. With a knowledge not only of the numbers but of their staff members’ particular skills, a leader can organize work for maximum value and efficiency. While a manager might say “Do tasks X and Y, then report to me,” a leader will say “Do task X while I do task Y, and then we’ll compare notes.”
Do our managers seek power or influence?
Managers need a certain amount of power over the employees they manage. Those who plan to stay managers will typically seek to “advance” in their careers by expanding the group of employees over whom they have power.
Leaders, by contrast, are more interested in influence than power. Rather than seeking to instruct and control a certain group of employees, leaders will offer their advice and input to any member of the organization who asks for it, whether or not the leader is also that person’s manager. Leaders seek to influence, not to control.
Do our managers focus on small tasks or the big picture?
As the title implies, a manager’s primary job is to manage. Managers focus on day-to-day tasks, metrics, and concrete results. Their priorities rarely extend beyond a specific task or project, and they describe their biggest accomplishments in terms of projects finished, dollar amounts saved or earned, and efficiency achieved.
Leaders, on the other hand, consider the “big picture” – and they talk about it in a way that inspires others to look at the big picture as well. Leaders never lose sight of the overall goal, mission, or vision, and they incorporate these ideas into the daily work they and their employees are asked to do.
The experienced recruiters at ABA Search & Staffing can help you find the experienced and driven legal support staff you need. Contact our expert recruiters today to learn how our team of professionals can positively impact yours.