How do I define my role as a manager?
Very different demands are placed on people in management positions. For example, they are expected to take responsibility for managing and leading employees and also to be able to make business decisions and solve problems. In other words, they have to ensure that products and services are sold and that the sales figures are right. These are just a few examples within a wide range of responsibilities.
Have you ever asked yourself specifically: How do I define my role as a manager? Where do I currently stand and what do I still want to achieve in and for the company?
It can be very helpful for your everyday work to become aware of your own role as a manager. Are you the typical supervisor who distributes tasks and controls results or do you act more as a mentor? Do you act collegially toward your employees or are hierarchies important to you?
If you can define your role as a leader for yourself, it will be possible to embody this role authentically to the outside world. Reflection will therefore not only bring more clarity to yourself, but your role and your role behavior will also be easier for your employees to understand. And that, in turn, will minimize possible conflict potential - because problems arise primarily when there is still ambiguity.
It's best to start thinking about your role as a leader soon. You will find a list of different role models below.
The supervisor
The supervisor manages a department or a team in the company. His central areas of activity are: Defining the goals and tasks of the employees who report to him or her, supervising their work performance, and solving problems that arise in connection with their work.
In your role as a supervisor, you should also act as a positive role model and help ensure that employees adhere to company values and goals through your behavior. By motivating and encouraging individual team members, you will increase their performance and commitment to the company.
The Mentor
As a mentor, you help employees develop their skills and career opportunities. This may involve sharing your own experience and know-how in discussions, coaching younger colleagues and advising them on career issues. A manager in the role of mentor will encourage employees to realize their potential and purposefully advance their careers. In his or her role, the mentor is open, cooperative, flexible and accommodating, so that a basis of trust can quickly be established with the mentees.
The colleague
When you meet your co-workers in the role of colleague, you collaborate on projects or tasks at the same level as the entire team. You share ideas with other team members, solicit feedback, and gain a different perspective on company operations. The role change from manager to colleague can be very valuable for you to gain insight into different levels of the company.
The coordinator
As a coordinator, the manager has the task of organizing and coordinating cooperation and communication within a group of employees. The coordinator monitors procedures and processes and ensures that they are completed on time.
He or she also ensures that rules and standards are adhered to in order to optimize operations. He or she assembles teams and selects the appropriate personnel for them.
A coordinator must have the ability to quickly identify problems and find solutions. He should have organizational talent as well as perfect analytical skills. A reliable and structured way of working is also an advantage in order to be able to complete projects within the specified time frame.
The Expert
As a leader, you are likely to be considered an expert in your field if you have extensive knowledge and experience in the area in which you lead. For the company, it is a benefit if you pass on your extensive knowledge to your employees in the role of the expert.
But continuous learning is also the basis for further development for yourself: from time to time, you should refresh and update your specialist knowledge through further training.
The controller
In the role of controller, the manager becomes an analyst who collects and evaluates information and data. Using the data, he or she is able to develop improvements for products and processes as well as drive further development.
He monitors the progress and performance of employees and teams so that work processes run effectively and efficiently and company goals are achieved. It is important that he or she also takes the needs of employees into account in his or her role and maintains transparent communication. As a controller, the manager ideally has very good motivational and communication skills. In this way, he or she can ensure that employees remain motivated while at the same time fulfilling the demands placed on them. Under no circumstances should the control function become a burden on employees.
The director
A director runs the show in theater and film - he or she instructs the actors and all the participants what to do. The manager in the role of the director is similar: In the company, he or she is responsible for the deployment and management of the employees. He or she coordinates activities and resources, promotes communication and collaboration, and formulates expectations for each individual.
When he implements the company script in everyday work, as a director he must also be able to put himself in other people's shoes. He should recognize their needs and potential problems and suggest solutions.
The innovator
The innovator will foster a culture of constant renewal in the company. As a leader in this role, he himself points out promising prospects for the future and encourages his employees to think creatively and come up with new ideas. Regular brainstorming sessions can be good platforms for discussing upcoming changes within the team and planning them together.
By being willing to transform, the company can compete and evolve in the ever-changing marketplace.
Conclusion
To define your role as a leader, consider the different role models. Certainly, it depends on your personal situation or even the circumstances in the company which role is the most suitable for you. You can also change from one role to another, but you should communicate this to your employees and justify it. Such a change of role always gives you, as a manager, the opportunity to choose a different perspective in order to better identify problem areas in the company or to optimize processes even further.
