Research reveals key managerial skills

EXCELLENT ‘people skills’ are now considered a more important managerial asset than ability in financial management, according to career development research revealed by the Institute of Management (IM).

The IM report, entitled ‘The Learning Manager’ examined the experiences of managers on issues such as training needs, development programmes, and specific sectors of expertise.

When asked about the type of expertise they think they need to acquire, managers believe they need to combine more traditional business skills with a strong focus on ‘people skills’. Skills strongly tipped for future important included dealing with change, strategic thinking and ensuring customer satisfaction. These are closely followed by the need for excellent verbal communication and listening skills, which were ranked near the bottom of their priority list five years ago. At the same time, financial management has dropped from fourth to ninth place in the skill hierarchy over the past five years.

When choosing a development programme, managers continue to favour structured courses, but indicate an increasing need for self-managed approaches, which include networking and open learning. As providers of training, business schools are still rated highly, but face increasing competition from corporate universities, publishers and other business schools offering more flexible on-line packages.

Looking at the challenges ahead, executives concluded that the way in which business address their customer relationship management and their ability to deal with the impact of technology will be the most important factors determining their ongoing success. However, less tangible factors, such as the ability of business to unleash creativity, were also seen as crucial to competitiveness. Therefore managers saw their top priorities as being able to deal with change whilst learning how to lead others.

Mary Chapman, Director General of the IM, said: “Today’s managers are not just paying lip service to the concept of professional management. They take their development seriously and are taking the necessary steps to ensure they are equipped to meet the challenges that lie ahead.” (CL)