How to educate myself to be a great manager?

[Myanna]

I'm likely to have interviews in the next couple of weeks for jobs in my company, one of which involves leading a fair size team. I have v limited line management experience which the interviewers will know.

I'm looking for recommendations of books etc on line management which will help me answer questions, so at least I can give sensible responses.

As background, I'm interviewing while on mat leave for a big promotion and I'm not due back for another 6 months so things may be stacked against me to begin with!

Thank you

There's a thread currently going, not sure if you've seen it which gives a few ideas. Link below.

In addition to what has been said on that thread, I would advise any manager who wants to be great to have a strong command of.employment law so they follow good practice aligned to legislation which is the framework to ensure employees are treated with respect and fairness. Equally a manager will recognise talent and factors such as the employer being loyal and trustworthy. It cuts both ways.

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/employment_issues/3202573-How-to-be-a-good-manager

Do you feel a leaning towards managing and leading others? The one thing that will stack in your favour if you can convince the interviewers that your motivation towards management is not just about furthering your own career but also inspiriing, developing, leading and supporting others.

That's the difference between a mediocre and a great manager.

Great manger in the eyes of bosses or team?

The askamanager.org blog is great if you read through the tags on management. I do think it's something one learns on the job, though- there's no substitute for actually managing people. And don't be afraid of having tough conversation - it's impossible to manage someone effectively without them!

Very helpful thank you. And more responses welcome!

Whilst I agree nothing going to replace hands on experiance, I would definitely recommend looking into high performance coaching. Not sure if you can self learn it from books as I attended classroom training but defo worthwhile.

Any character flaws and weaknesses will be highlighted, when you manage other people.

The trick is to be aware of your own flaws, so that you can avoid having them impact on your tram.

If you are needing a crash course to pick up tips to help you at interviews in the next couple of weeks, try looking on Pinterest. There are absolutely loads of 'pins' on leadership, what makes a good manager etc.

Good books include “credibility” by Kouzes and Posner, and “time think” by Nancy Kline

Thanks all! Lots of reading to keep me busy.

Another piece of advice: if you use any resources (books, journals, websites) remember to contextualise them to the country where you personally operate as a manager.

For example there are a plethora of self-help resources on "how to be.a good manager" the majority of which are written for a US readership.

There is a world of difference between the culture and legislation in US compared to Europe / UK. This includes management styles. Even if you are in a globalised environment, you still have to work to the legislation of the country where your staff are located.