Management skills training is designed to help professionals develop enhanced managerial and leadership skills. As the demands of managerial roles evolve, so too does the need for continuing training.
Many people have a natural ability to perform well as managers, but the most successful management professionals are often those who prioritise the maintenance and improvement of their professional skills. Exceptional leaders combine the application of theoretical knowledge with on-the-job experience and their developed managerial skills to produce remarkable results.
This post explores some of the essential skills of management, before looking at how management training itself can help you. We also discuss some of the courses we offer to help you enhance your own management skills and capabilities.
Management professionals must possess a wide range of skills, such as leadership, planning, organisational, strategy, and communication.
An individual can learn them and then pass them on to others. Leadership and communication consist more of ‘soft’ skills, skills or attributes which the manager can develop as they fulfil their responsibilities and interact with others throughout their career. Below we discuss each of these five core skills in more depth.
1. Leadership skills
As a manager, you’ll be leading teams or even the entire organisation, and will have to cultivate an array of leadership skills, such as the ability to empathise, motivate, delegate, mentor, and build teams. It will also be necessary to invoke key attributes such as patience, reliability, and the will to empower others. You’ll be responsible for coordinating teams and tasks, and for ensuring projects are completed on time and to a sufficiently respectable standard, if not a high one.
2. Planning skills
A manager has to focus not just on day-to-day operations, but also on the bigger picture and possess excellent forward-planning skills. This will entail setting priorities in line with the organisation’s goals, reviewing systems, and attending team training activities as well as pursuing their own professional development with management skills training.
3. Organisational skills
Any manager who truly wants to build strong management skills must have outstanding organisational skills. As a manager, you must coordinate several projects simultaneously and oversee event calendars and deadlines. Solid skills in event planning, project management, scheduling, and general administrative skills can help the manager to ease stress levels, balance their workload, and guarantee they (and the team) hit critical deadlines. This will improve workflow and lead to more efficient operation.
4. Strategic skills
Strategic skills are paramount. A manager must be able to identify inefficiencies and correct them, and to seek out solutions successfully when challenges arise. Strategic and analytical thinking, problem-solving, conflict resolution, and creativity are all required strategic skills for management. Managers who are competent in the strategic aspects of their role will be able to solve problems not just for themselves, but also for their team and outline possible steps team members can take to resolve issues.
5. Communication skills
A management professional unable to communicate well will struggle in their role. The manager must understand the requirements of the organisation, and then they must communicate these and the tasks to be performed clearly to others. Active listening, public speaking, collaboration, persuasion, interpersonal communication, interviewing, and written and verbal communication skills are all indispensable in management.
Management training courses: what you need to know
Reliable management skills training will provide you with the tools necessary to excel in a leadership role. But what kind of methods can you expect on a training course, and what would the outcomes be?
Management training methods
Certain management skills will require different training methods to make the most of the course material. Here are some examples:
- Didactic learning: here, the tutor teaches the course participants directly, providing them with management theory that they can apply in the performance of their roles
- Role-playing: the use of role-play can help course participants to develop skills in problem-solving, active listening, empathising, communication, or other indispensable management skills
- Scenario setting, which enables participants to receive feedback, learn from mistakes and understand the best approach when it comes to decision-making or other skills
Benefits of a management training course
A management training course can benefit you in a variety of ways. We’ve picked out some of the main outcomes from such a course:
An understanding of the role of a manager or director
When you enrol in a management course, you can expect to learn about the role of managers or directors and what an employer who hires you for one is likely to envisage as part of your role. You can leave the course with a clearer idea of what they may be looking for from you and how you’ll aid your organisation in moving further towards its goals.
Increased self-awareness
Self-awareness is a vital attribute in the world of management. Through increased self-awareness, management professionals can understand themselves and become able to identify their own strengths and weaknesses, evaluate their own performance, and improve to lead effectively.
Development of the ability to understand and design processes
A course can teach you different concepts and their importance so that you can adapt processes, make strategic plans, and analyse their success.
Strategy formation skills
To form a strategy, you must be able to appreciate and analyse various internal and external factors that could influence the impact of the strategy. On a management course, you can learn to do this so that you can form and deliver a strategy for successful change in the organisation.
Development of the ability to make evidence-based decisions
Although instinct can play an important part in effective management, the capacity to make reasoned, informed decisions is imperative. If, as a management professional, you’re reporting to someone higher up in the organisation, you must be able to justify decisions. On a management course, you can learn to use data or other evidence to support the decisions you make in the performance of your duties.
INPD management skills training courses
At In Professional Development, we offer a range of management skills training courses that will assist you in enhancing your skills. You may wish to consider the training courses below.
CMI Level 7 Coaching and Mentoring Development Programme
Coaching has become an important part of modern management, and in this course, you’ll learn all about coaching and how to embed a culture of coaching and mentorship in your organisation. As well as studying coaching and how to apply it successfully, you’ll learn to communicate more effectively, which is indispensable in coaching and develop a stronger sense of self-awareness, confidence, and leadership capability.
Advanced Strategic Planning for Directors
As you might expect from the title, this course focuses on strategy development and planning. You’ll learn about the role of the director and of the board of directors, and learn to make strategic decisions based on evidence. The course provides you with insights into new ways of working so that you can evaluate the impact of strategy on your organisation and lead successfully.
CMI Level 5 Leadership and Management Programme
The CMI Level 5 Leadership and Management Programme is for aspiring directors. There’s a focus on self-awareness, different behaviours and on management theories and their application so that you can get the best out of yourself and out of the people you lead. You’ll also learn about planning and about managing change. Additionally, the course will help you to improve your communication skills.
Improve your management skills with INPD
Effective management skills training will assist you in building the desired skills and aptitudes to excel in your role as a management professional. You’ll be able to develop the soft skills and the hard ones necessary to handle the different responsibilities of management professionals successfully.
To find out more about our management training courses, visit our courses page, or send us an email to enquiries@inpd.co.uk, message us using the form on our contact page or call us on 0161 826 3139. We can advise you on the right course so that you can improve your management skills and thrive as a professional. It will be our pleasure.
