Our Management Focus

Management Capability and Business Capability

The term ‘ business capability’ means the capacity of the business to develop within current resource constraints.

A capable business is one that has good structure, systems, and operational processes that give it the potential to expand and grow.  A capable business also needs the services of technical experts. But more importantly it requires capable managers. Management capability ensures that the business improves its performance and outcomes and ultimately its growth potential.

Management Focus is specifically here to help you with the development of ‘management capabilities’ and not the wider range of your technical, operational and functional capacities, even though they are also important to the ultimate success of your business. Management decisions on technical, operational and functional processes are important but relatively straight forward with good input from engaged people. What really makes a difference in the most successful businesses is the attitudes, knowledge and skills of the people who work in the business.  These are the skills that are enhanced and developed by a capable manager.

There is no ceiling on management capability. No matter how good a manager is there is capacity for improvement, and the more capable managers have greater potential to develop their skills as they take on increasingly more complex and challenging business environments.

One further factor distinguishes truly capable managers as it does top athletes.  Management capability is developed through coaching, training and on-going practice. 

It is to help New Zealand managers adopt a process of continuous learning that Management Focus came into existence. 

Management Capabilities Defined

We will focus on the attributes, knowledge, skills and tasks for 3 important clusters of management capabilities that management texts describe as:

• Organising,
• Leading/directing and
• Controlling

These tasks sound fairly straight forward so that becoming a good manager can not be that challenging. However, as this web site will illustrate people aren’t as we predictable in their behaviour as machines. This influences the changing dynamics of organisational cultures and when coupled with competitive market places it is hardly surprising that these tasks quickly expand into an incredible range of potential combinations. So much so, that hundreds of good books have been written on the topic of management.

It is these activities that come to the fore when we work ‘on the business’ seeking to make it deliver more value, be more effective and efficient. Naturally there needs to be a balance with operating the business or working ‘in the business’ with its focus on making the current business model work well, performing daily work tasks, that generate the products or services of our business or enterprise.

Management is more than a role or title

Who in your enterprise is accountable for management tasks and accountabilities?

Most businesses and other enterprises start from quite small beginnings so that multi-tasking with some mix of management and operational tasks is often the norm.

It is only when businesses grow to an appropriate scale that one or more specialist management positions are created and the vast majority of their time is focused on organising, directing and controlling a business in whole or part, including the people who do the work.

In today’s competitive environment even large highly successful businesses often act like their smaller to mid size counterparts through empowering operational staff to take on some management activities and responsibilities.

What if a key manager leaves

Irrespective of how a business approaches the assignment of management roles and tasks, staff turnover makes it important for the organisation to find ways to embed within it as much as possible the management capabilities and knowledge which their employees bring to the business. This ensures that when employees leave very little business capability is lost.