7 Management skills every manager needs in 2023

It’s no secret that managers have a more pivotal role than ever before in our increasingly more fluid workplaces, so it should come as no surprise that we need to take a fresh look at the management skills that they need to succeed.

Managers are being squeezed – feeling pressure from above and below. Corporate leaders want them to implement new strategies, particularly regarding remote work, and spread company culture. Their employees want them to provide more flexibility, training and career opportunities, whilst being mindful of their wellbeing as employee turnover continues to rise.

Front line managers have to take on all these pressures all whilst dealing with their day to day managerial duties and achieving performance objectives.

They’re dealing with the reality of an ever-changing workplace landscape where new technologies are constantly being rolled out and, creating new challenges which must be handled in order for them and their teams to succeed.

With the pressure of expanding responsibilities and high expectations, it’s no surprise to hear that our managers are struggling and there’s a giant skill gap forming between the traditional managerial skills that they have or are being taught – such as goal setting, decision-making and delegation – and the additional skills required in our vastly changing workplaces.

In this blog we take a look at the enhanced set of management skills needed by managers in 2023 so that they can thrive: those dealing with the reality of on the ground issues like managing remote and hybrid workers, new technology adoption and organisational change.

The 7 management skills your managers need in 2023

The following are seven of the enhanced management skill areas that managers need to develop to thrive in 2023 and beyond:

1. Focus on personal wellbeing
2. Productivity
3. Create empowerment
4. Inclusive leadership
5. Stakeholder management
6. Change management
7. Career conversations

1. Focus on personal wellbeing

There’s more pressure on managers now than ever before and recent reports show this shouldn’t be ignored as almost half (49%) of frontline managers are feeling burned out on a daily basis.

As the old maxim goes “you can’t pour from an empty cup,” so it’s critically important that managers are equipped with the knowledge and skills that prioritise their physical and psychological wellbeing.

Those who intentionally safeguard their wellbeing at work will thrive, be more productive, more resilient, engaged and be in a better position to support their team‘s wellbeing too.

2. Productivity

As our managers’ list of responsibilities increases, their need to adequately prioritise their workload is becoming even more critical.

Managers need to be able to balance the expectations of both their leaders to implement corporate strategies and company culture and deliver training, career opportunities, purpose and flexibility for their employees.

It’s a big ask and managers need the right strategies to deliver on their most important goals. As the variety of these goals increases and their available resources are reduced, they need to be more efficient than ever.

Managers need strategies to correctly organize their diaries and optimize their use of time. They need to schedule specific slots of time for specific tasks, based on their awareness of their energy and focus levels.

They also need to be assertive when it comes to putting boundaries around high-value tasks and events. Great managers will avoid the trap of being reactive when it comes to shallow work tasks such as emails and administrative work. At all times they should be clear on the important deep work items that require the most attention.

3. Create empowerment

Research has regularly shown that empowering employees at work can contribute to higher levels of motivation, commitment, and overall job satisfaction. This is becoming ever more important as our teams become more remote, and managers have less daily contact with their people.

Managers need to determine the right type and level of autonomy for each team member to foster individual responsibility, whilst ensuring they feel supported in a safe working environment. When managers achieve this, they can better delegate tasks to their team members as they have greater communication and agreed levels of accountability.

4. Inclusive leadership

To drive engagement and team performance, managers need to establish strong working relationships with each employee, based on mutual trust and respect. This is where the management skill of ‘inclusive leadership’ comes in…

Managers should learn how to customize their leadership style to the specific needs of each team member through one-on-one conversations. Knowing and empathising with each individual. Additionally, they should romote team psychological safety so that team members can feel confident to collaborate, share ideas and ask questions.

Research has also demonstrated that managers can improve employee cultural connectedness by up to 23% when they effectively model culture through their behaviours and processes, so focusing on these relational aspects of team building is integral to positively influencing their team’s overall effectiveness – a point that 76% of employees agree with.

5. Stakeholder management

Almost two thirds (59%) of managers believe they need to be better at balancing multiple stakeholder interests compared to just three years ago. This is very telling of the often-conflicting expectations managers have to handle as part of their role.

To be more efficient and successfully manage change, today’s managers need to be able to analyse their stakeholders in any given situation or project, and identify their power, and areas of interest. Armed with these insights they can get to grips with and understand their stakeholders’ potentially contrasting expectations and develop communication plans to manage them and maintain healthy productive relationships.

6. Change management

Our workplaces have been in a near constant state of flux since 2020, due to rapid technology advances, and remote work mandates. While employees, have had to find their feet along the way, front line managers have had to implement new procedures and set the standard for their team at every turn.

As managers take on challenge after challenge, they must be armed with the tools and resilient mindset to effectively respond to their ever-changing workplace, so that they can inspire their team to embrace the exciting opportunities that change can offer.

7. Career conversations

During a time, when workforce mobility and adaptability have never been more important to an organisation’s sustainability, it’s crucial that managers have more effective career conversations with their team members. Not only will employees feel more motivated and satisfied within their roles, it will typically increase their productivity levels too.

The current figures surrounding the number of conversations being held between managers and employees about their professional development are pretty startling and paint a bleak picture. According to recent findings,  only 35% of employees were encouraged to learn by their manager in the past 6 months, and a mere 14% were encouraged to build a career development plan. So it’s an area that managers need to address urgently.

Next steps

So, what do you think? Do you think your organisation is focusing on the training and implementation of traditional managerial skills? Or are your managers equipped with the necessary additional skills to thrive in 2023 and beyond?  If so, do your managers have all 7 management skills identified by our L&D experts?

Not quite sure? Complete this FREE diagnostic here and find out how they stack up.