Leaders are not heroes: they are not superhuman, they are not single-handedly responsible for the success of an organization, nor do they always have the answers or make the right decisions.
Leaders manage relationships and possess the people skills required to motivate teams and incentivize and empower individuals. According to author Michael Feiner in his book The Feiner Points of Leadership, “Anything that an organization achieves is achieved by a group of people working together.”
But successful teams are not formed by accident; they are built. Effective managers are keen to which individuals will meld into the culture and rise to the status of “top performers.” Your ability to build successful teams is a reflection on your hiring and recruitment skills. As the economy continues to rebound and unemployment steadily drops, the market for the best employees will become more fierce.
And once you have the “best of the best” hired, you better know how to keep them happy. After all, the cost of employee turnover is more than the price of a newspaper ad. If you’re in the business of property management, beware; when great employees leave, your tenants may soon follow. It’s time you learn what it takes to keep employees loyal.
On the following pages, Buildings presents some of the basics of managing an FM team - including tips and traits necessary to make the transition from manager to leader (yes, there is a difference). Also included in this special report is information on how to hire and retain the professionals that can elevate your organization and its work from adequate to outstanding.
When many of you told us a year ago in a readership survey that staffing and personnel were keeping you awake at night, we thought it was time to provide you with insightful solutions to some of your biggest management challenges. Hopefully, you’ll sleep a little bit easier as a result of our efforts.
- Jana J. Madsen ([email protected]), Managing Editor
