Top Traits of Today’s Most Effective Executives: Are You a Match?

Executives used to be men (mainly men), who had done all their hard work years and even decades before. Today, executive positions are no longer those given to managers who have simply stayed in post for more years than anyone else, offered sinecures to maintain their status, when they are still some five or ten years away from retiring on a full pension. Let’s have a look at the most effective traits employed by today’s executives so you can see if you measure up or not.

Empathy

Good executives and top managers have empathy with their staff. This means that when staff members come to them with queries or complaints, the executives don’t brush off their grievances with statements like, ‘Everyone is struggling financially, it’s not just you,’ or ‘It’s a physically demanding job, you knew that when you took it on.’ These statements might very well be true, but using these types of negative statements serve only to tell your staff member that not only do they not matter to you, but also that you think that their problem, whatever it might be, is trivial and unimportant, not something that you are interested in helping them to resolve. And this means that your staff member will feel unappreciated; their productivity will drop and you might even find yourself training up their replacement – something which costs your business a lot of money, compared to simply allowing a flexible work schedule or authorising a small raise…

Flexibility

And speaking of flexibility, it is important for management to understand that, even though equality at work is important, equity is almost more so. This can mean that the staff member who is working their way through a course of chemo, for example, is given lighter duties and more time off than their counterparts. However, it should not mean that one or two colleagues are given all the extra work that is then needed – that should be spread evenly, and even be undertaken by management where necessary.

Persuasive

Executives must be persuasive, encouraging and uplifting their staff rather than berating and scolding them. If you can persuade a member of staff that they are valued and their work is appreciated by the C-suite, they are more likely to work even harder and try to maintain that good impression. Telling those same staff members that just making their targets is not enough, that their jobs might be at risk, or even that they are a liability to the company is perhaps the most efficient way to kill morale at work and leave you with a whole staff of unenthused and unhappy employees – the best of whom will quickly find new work, perhaps using the services of an executive headhunters company Eagle Headhunters to find their dream position.

Excellent Communication

Finally, an effective executive has excellent communication skills, ably letting people know their expectations, informing them when they have made targets and congratulating them; letting them know of any misses and how these can be avoided in the future, and laying out a clear path to success for everyone from the lowest employee all the way up to a strategic vision for the entire company.