Management Skills

Management skills can be defined as certain attributes or abilities that an executive should
possess in order to fulfill specific tasks in an organization. They include the capacity to perform
executive duties in an organization while avoiding crisis situations and promptly solving
problems when they occur. Management skills can be developed through learning and practical
experience as a manager. The skills help the manager to relate with their fellow co-workers and
know how to deal well with their subordinates, which allows for the easy flow of activities in
the organization.
Robert L. Katz, a teacher and business executive, has popularized this concept. Though the
concept was primarily proposed by Henri Fayol, a famous management theorist and father of
modern management. According to American social and organizational psychologist Robert
Katz, the basic types of management skills include:

• Technical Skills: Technical skills comprise the knowledge and capabilities to perform
specialized tasks related to a specific field. In this example, the field is computer
programming, and technical skills may include aspects like knowledge of computer
languages, knowledge of advanced algorithms, or knowledge of assembly languages
related to the basic functions of a computer.

• Human skill: The human or the interpersonal skills are the skills that present the
managers’ ability to interact, work or relate effectively with people. These skills enable
the managers to make use of human potential in the company and motivate the
employees for better results. This set of skills includes the ability to understand human
behavior, to communicate effectively with others, and to motivate individuals to
accomplish their objectives. Giving positive feedback to employees, being sensitive to
their individual needs, and showing a willingness to empower subordinates are all
examples of good human relations skills.

• Conceptual Skills: Conceptual skills include the ability to view the organization as a
whole, understand how the various parts are interdependent, and assess how the
organization relates to its external environment. Briefly, the manager’s ability to think
in the abstract. These skills allow managers to evaluate situations and develop
alternative courses of action. Good conceptual skills are especially necessary for
managers at the top of the management pyramid, where strategic planning takes place.
 • Diagnostic Skills: Skills that enable them to visualize the most appropriate response
to a situation. These skills are acquired through formal training, practice, and
experimentation. A physician diagnoses a patient’s illness by analyzing symptoms and
determining their probable cause. Similarly, a manager can diagnose and analyze a
problem in the organization by studying its symptoms and then developing a solution.

In order to be successful in planning, organizing, leading, and controlling, managers must use
a wide variety of skills. The degree to which each type of skill is used depends upon the level
of the manager’s position in hierarchy. Additionally, in an increasingly global marketplace,
it pays for managers to develop a special set of skills to deal with global management issues.
The following figure shows the relative skills needed for effective performance at different
levels of management.

Figure: Managerial skills at different management level

Technical skill is especially important for first line managers who spend much of their time
training workers and answering questions about work-related problems. That means technical
skills are the most important for lower level managers because the managers supervise the
workers who produce products or serve customers. Team leaders and first-line managers need
technical knowledge and skills to train new employees and help employees solve problems.
Human skill, although important for managers at all levels, is specially needed by mid-level
managers. Their ability to tap this resource of their subordinates is more important than their
own technical proficiency. However, because lower level managers spend much of their time
solving technical problems, upper level managers may actually spend more time dealing
directly with people

Conceptual skill is mostly needed at the top level. In fact, the importance of conceptual skill
increases as one rises through the ranks of management. At higher and higher levels of
organization, the full range of relationships, and the organization’s place in time are important
to understand. This is where a manager must have a clear grasp of the total picture of what his/
her enterprise would look like in the remote future.

Diagnostic Skills is also mostly needed at the top level in an organization. At top level,
managers deal with analytical problems where logical and objective investigation is required.
To reach a feasible solution by analyzing the problems or an opportunity, critical reasoning is
important. That is why diagnostic skills is basically an advance level skill for top level
authority.