Abney Ramsay Associates: The 5 C's of People Management

1
The 5 C's of People Management
Abney Ramsay Associates

1. Create
2. Comprehend
3. Communicate
4. Collaborate
5. Confront

2
Traditional management models stress the
development of detailed project plans and the
rigorous observation of disciplined models.
Developed by engineering and manufacturing
organisations they assume workflows with
controlled variables and fixed inputs, in short
they assume that you are managing machines, not
human beings.   Any experienced manager knows
that you can follow the Gant Chart and
spreadsheet every element to the finest degree,
but the human factor will always be the element
which bites back.   Failure to effectively engage
with people management repeatedly causes projects
to underperform, miss targets and fail, leaving
managers who adhered to the traditional
management models confused and frustrated. But
effective people management actually relies on
only five key skills, the Five Cs
3
Create   Build a team which is fit for purpose.
Dont try to use the wrong tool for the job and
then complain that the hammer wont make the
screw work! This involves making the correct
decisions on three elements.   The first is
recruitment, the fundamental basis of the success
of any business. If the right people arent
coming into an organisation how can you expect
the results to be successful? Hire the best
people, hire the right people.   The second
element is training. It is vital that you give
people the skills they need to do a good job. If
you have people who arent quite right, develop
them. They will not only be better suited and
more productive, they will be grateful for the
investment and commitment.   Thirdly and finally
a good manager must create the right team
structure and set the boundaries. A robust set of
measures for success, clearly explained and
tracked with discipline will give your people the
framework for success, and just as important,
tells them how to succeed.
4
Comprehend   Understand the people in your team,
their personalities, their motivations and
personal goals. A good manager needs to be
empathetic, not a slave driver. One person may be
a natural completer-finisher, another could be
great at concept development. By understanding
the individuals, rather than treating them as
identikit simulacra, you will find better ways to
communicate, motivate and understand them. How do
you do this? By spending time with them, the
classic management by wandering around pays
dividends here. Invest in your people and you
will gain the benefit of understanding. Once you
begin to understand the people in your team you
will be able to make better judgements as to
where they will be most effective, how to get the
most from them and how to develop them.    
5
Communicate   It is essential that you can convey
your thoughts, concerns and needs to your team.
You must be able to motivate them and lead them,
tell them when youre not getting what you need,
explain when changes are made and congratulate
them when they are doing well. All of this
requires effective skills in communication. This
need not even be overtly verbal communication,
influencing them through a simple smile or
cheerful hello can create a positive frame of
mind. By ensuring that you always come across as
positive you make your team feel positive about
you and themselves.
6
  When a more detailed communication is needed
your message must be succinct and clear, getting
to the heart of the matter and reinforcing your
goal. To do this it is vital that your
communication is planned what is the best
approach, the best time, the right media? The key
is invariably to keep it as simple as possible.
Planning not only makes communication more
effective, it also saves time by spending a
little more of his/her time planning the manager
can save a lot of both their and the teams time
in clarifying what was meant.   Communicate
clearly and often. If things are going well its
important to say so, and if not so well its
doubly important. A good manager should never shy
away from addressing issues as soon as they are
identified. This doesnt mean aggressive
confrontation, but instead engaging with an issue
collaboratively. Give feedback, and when you do
make sure you open with a positive and close with
a positive. By telling someone what you value and
admire in them they can more readily accept a
criticism, and acceptance is the first step to
resolution. Finally, make sure you ask for
feedback as well as giving it and you will win
yourself support and loyalty, and may well learn
something of value about yourself.
7
Collaborate   A manager is not an island, he/she
should be at the heart of the team. Ensure that
you share and delegate to get the best results.
People will respond to being given
responsibility, they step up and by allowing them
to develop into doing something that previously
only you could do you free yourself to do
something else and add value to the entire
process. In short you multiply the effectiveness
of the team.   Of course not everything is plain
sailing and issues will occur, but by taking
joint responsibility for any failures in the team
(after all it is your team) you show everyone
that you are all in it together, engendering
respect, loyalty and commitment.
8
Confront   People are different, they see things
differently and engage with issues differently,
and where this happens there is invariably
conflict. This can be overt, where two or more
people argue over the best way forwards or, often
more dangerously, it may be hidden when someone
disagrees but does not feel empowered to
criticise. Conflict can kill a team, it can
create resentment, undermine cooperation and
drive great people out. When conflict appears it
is vital that the manager spots it, by having a
good understanding of the people in his/her team
(Comprehend), and then engages with it. Good
communication, bringing the various ideas to the
table and looking at them openly, can turn a
threat into an opportunity. A team can walk away
understanding each other better, feeling more
cohesive and possibly having discovered a better
way forwards. The managers role is to
communicate and engage, and never be defensive,
even if they are the subject of the criticism. By
taking on the mantle of management you set
yourself up for criticism, and a good manager can
take it and learn from it.
9
  Of course there are times when there is no
resolution. Entrenched contrary opinions may not
see a middle ground. In these instances a good
manager must be able to not only walk away
themselves, but lead others to walk away too. If
a decision must be made it must be the managers
decision. They must act as the lightning rod for
any ill feeling never let it remain within and
between the team. In the most extreme cases an
individual will not back down and cannot be
managed. Their actions undermine the team and
threaten the project. Early and decisive
engagement is vital. The manager must be robust
and unswerving, bringing clear and irrefutable
evidence of the negative behaviour and its impact
on the project. The meeting with the individual
should never be aggressive, but always be robust,
explaining the issues clearly, using the evidence
to back the managers assertions. The manager
should be supported by higher management and HR,
to reinforce to the employee the seriousness of
their actions. Finally it must be accepted that
not everyone is right for a role or a team, and
sometimes the right thing to do is to move
someone out. This is never easy, but if it is
right it should never be shied away from. For a
good people manager the team must always be more
important than any one person.
10
  These five elements Create, Comprehend,
Communicate, Collaborate and Confront, form the
basis of an effective people management approach.
Whilst each element is important in its own right
they all interrelate with and support the others.
By employing this approach effectively a manager
will not only deliver the project goals they are
tasked with, but in doing so he/she will be
creating more rounded, effective individuals,
developing a flexible and motivated team and
cementing their own reputation as a manager not
only of projects, but of people.   Jason Collings
is Director of Quarsh, a leading UK Recruitment
Process Outsourcing provider specialising in
talent acquisition and HR support. Visit our
website http//www.araainc.com/