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Executive Summary n No. 13

What it Takes to be a Good Manager

Research conducted by the Kenexa Research
Institute evaluated workers’ views of their
immediate managers.
The latest results from the universal study indicate
that 63% of subordinate employees rate their
managers as effective. Employee’s evaluations
of their manager are driven by the extent to
which the manager displays the fundamentals
of managerial competence: treating employees
fairly, doing a good job at managing the team’s
work and the team itself, and providing useful
feedback to the employee.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY n NO. 13 n WWW.KENEXA.COM
job satisfaction. Additionally, those employees
who are satisfied with their manager state a much
Good managers higher intention to stay with the organization
versus those who are dissatisfied. Those who
have a rate their managers as good also feel they have
significant, a promising future with the company and have
confidence in the organization’s future.
favorable
impact on how “It really boils down to two fundamental truths.
Effective managers are respectful, considerate and
these workers fair, as well as good organizers who can clearly
rate their communicate work expectations and provide
feedback. While this is easy to grasp conceptually,
pride in their

many managers struggle with implementation,

There are important differences among cultures organization,
as well. Brazilian workers rate ethical conduct as
a determinant of managerial effectiveness. Indian
willingness to
workers are more willing to do the very best for the reccommend
company and have higher feelings of job security
when working for an effective manager. German
it as a place to
workers who view their managers as effective are wrok and their
more satisfied with their job.
overall job
For all workers studied, good managers have a satisfaction.
significant, favorable impact on how these workers
rate their pride in their organization, willingness to
recommend it as a place to work and their overall
but for those who get it, there are huge dividends,”
said Jack Wiley, executive director, Kenexa
Research Institute.
DATABASE OVERVIEW
The Kenexa WorkTrends™ database is a
comprehensive normative database of employee
survey results with comparisons on topics
including leadership, employee engagement and
customer orientation from workers in Brazil,
China, Germany, India, the United Kingdom
and the United States.
 STUDY DETAILS MANAGER EFFECTIVENESS
The WorkTrends survey question was designed specifically to
evaluate how workers view their immediate manager. The question Sixty-three percent of subordinate employees rate their managers
asked was: as effective.

Overall, how good a job do you feel is being done by your

manager? Country % Favorable

United States 63
KEY DRIVERS ACROSS COUNTRIES
United Kingdom 52
KRI asked a representative sample of over 1,000 workers from
Germany 55
Brazil, China, Germany, India, the United Kingdom and the
United States to rate the overall effectiveness of their immediate China 66
manager. We then identified the key “drivers” of managerial
effectiveness. They are shown below. India 73

Brazil 66
The universal results for the six countries indicate that subordinate
employees rate their managers favorably if the manager treats Average 63
employees fairly, does a good job at managing the work, provides
useful feedback and is a “people manager.”
In addition to the cross cultural drivers of managerial effectives,
there are unique differences among the six countries.

1. German workers feel that an immediate manager is

influential over an employee’s job satisfaction.
2. Indian workers associate an employee’s willingness to
do their very best and an employee’s sense of job security
with having an effective manager.
3. Brazilian workers rate ethics as a driver of
managerial effectiveness.

Manager Effectiveness Items Brazil China Germany India UK US

Manager treats employees fairly X X X X X X
Manager does a good job of managing the work X X X X X X

Manager provides useful feedback X X X X

Manager is good at people management X X X X

Overall job satisfaction X

People are motivated to do their best X

Rating of job security X

Manager is ethical X

Copyright Kenexa® Research Institute, 2007 2

 EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT
The WorkTrends survey questions were designed to evaluate
employee engagement. The questions asked were:
• I rarely think about looking for a new job with
another company.
• I am proud to tell people I work for my company.
Opinion items were rated using a 5-point Likert-like scale. The %
favorable is the percentage of people who chose either of the two
most positive answers (typically “strongly agree” or “agree”).

• I would gladly refer a good friend or family member
to my company for employment.
• Overall, I am extremely satisfied with my company
as a place to work.
Employee engagement is calculated by averaging the percentage of
favorable responses across these four items. This results in a single
score that reflects the overall employee engagement.

80 Satisfied With Immediate Manager

Unsatisfied With Immediate Manager

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0
US UK Germany China India Brazil
Note: Values represent percent favorable.

ABOUT KENEXA MEDIA CONTACT

Kenexa provides business solutions for human resources. We help global organizations multiply Jennifer Meyer
business success by identifying the best individuals for every job and fostering optimal work Kenexa
environments for every organization. For more than 20 years, Kenexa has studied human 1-800-391-9557
behavior and team dynamics in the workplace, and has developed the software solutions, business jennifer.meyer@kenexa.com
processes and expert consulting that help organizations impact positive business outcomes
through HR. Kenexa is the only company that offers a comprehensive suite of unified products
and services that support the entire employee lifecycle from pre-hire to exit.

800.391.9557
www.kenexa.com

3 Copyright Kenexa® Research Institute, 2007