Manager’s Role, Skills, and Challenges

COMMON THREAD AMONG THE FUNCTIONS OF A MANAGER

The main objective of a manager’s role is that of managing people, and in order to be an effective manager, these individuals need to polish their people skills (Robbins, 2005), including – for example – communication skills, as in the case of Merck, Co.

Merck is a successful pharmaceutical company, widely known for their superb employee relations. This company has implemented a “face-to-face communication” strategy, where employees can meet directly their managers and discuss their concerns at any level (Denton, 2006). This strategy has proved to an effective tool in the success of the company, as it has helped its managers better understand the needs of their personnel. Merck is considered one of “the best-run and best-managed American companies” (Denton, 2006, p.3).

HOW GLOBALIZATION AFFECT A MANAGER’S PEOPLE SKILLS

In this globalization era, many companies are moving to overseas locations, and managers are faced with acquiring different people skills, having to deal with individuals of not just diverse cultural backgrounds, but with different needs, ambitions and personality traits than of those encountered in the US. A challenging task managers are learning to deal with is finding a balance between the needs of the company and their responsibility to their communities, whether is in the US or overseas (Robbins, 2005). According to Pasricha (2001), when McDonald’s first opened in India, there were many protests against the fast food chain store, mainly concerned of their use of animal products, but McDonald’s reassured that their menu was tailored with the “cultural and religious sentiments of the Hindu community in mind” (Pasricha, 2001, ¶ 6). The managers at McDonald’s had to adapt to the culture of the host country in order for their business to be prosperous.

CHALLENGES FACING CONTEMPORARY MANAGERS

Workforce diversity is one of the toughest challenges for managers these days....