What makes a great boss? It is actually a little more complex than you might think. While everyone is different and some employees will look for differing things out of an employer, there are certain attributes that should be constants. Depending on whether or not you are an effective leader, your workers may either love or hate working at the company, regardless of what the exact industry you are in. In order to be a great boss, you should have the following characteristics.
Cares About Getting to Know Employees
Think about the people working under you. Do you know all of their names by heart? Can you talk a little bit about each of their personal interests? While good bosses do not need to know every little detail about an employee’s life, you should at least show an interest in who they are as individuals. This includes being open to speaking with your subordinates often to talk about how they are doing and how they can improve. What makes a great boss? Ultimately, it is someone who cares about giving everyone the tools they need to succeed.
Inclusivity
If an employee feels like he or she is always kept out of the loop on important matters, then he or she is going to wonder what the point is in even staying with the company. You need to create an environment where everyone feels like their voice matters. Ask for input from everybody, and respect everyone’s point of view.
Honesty
What makes a great boss? Honesty is a crucial characteristic because if your workers feel like you are always withholding important information, then they will become wary about trusting you. This attribute also extends to employee performance. If you notice someone is slipping in their work, then you should be open with that person about it. You should be able to talk about it together and come up with a solution that works for everyone.
Invested in an Employee’s Success
As the employer, your focus might be on the overall success of the business, but you should also be helping your subordinates succeed in their personal goals. This includes finding unique talents everyone possesses and then giving them an opportunity to utilize those gifts in the workplace. For example, if you realize that someone has great public speaking skills but they spend all day in front of a computer not talking to anyone, think about giving them additional responsibilities where that talent can be fully realized.
Recognition
Many people wonder what tangible actions can be taken to answer the question of, ïWhat makes a great boss?ï Sometimes a pat on the back is all that is needed. People like being recognized for their accomplishments, so if one of your workers did something outstanding, then offer your gratitude. A simple ïThank youï is sometimes all that is needed, but it can also be good to offer little perks for workers who go above and beyond their job description. If people know that their hard work will be rewarded, then they will be more likely to continue that behavior going forward.
Coaching
Ultimately, a great boss should be someone who knows how to coach efficiently. That means maintaining a balance of controlling the situation and letting other people handle a task. You should be able to explain everything effectively and give your workers the tools they need to do their job. While it might be tempting to micromanage everything in order to ensure it gets done right, you need to know when to step back. Your employees are not going to get any better in a skill if you are always holding their hand. Make it clear that you will be around to offer assistance if needed, but in the end, your workers need to know how to take care of themselves.
Setting Expectations
Think of running your business as taking a road trip. It will not be as effective if people do not know the ultimate destination, so you need to set very clear expectations of what will be expected of each employee and how everyone’s actions will lead to a common goal. This can include meeting with employees regularly for performance reviews. People work harder if they know their hard work is going toward a worthy cause. In addition to having a goal in place, you should also have benchmarks that lead toward that end result. Are you still asking, ïWhat makes a great boss?ï Check out Mighty Recruiter for even more resources.