If a stranger asks you to rank your management team on a scale of one to ten in areas such as communication, delegation, etc, what would you say? Most people would rank them unrealistically high for fear their answers would get back to their boss.

Despite all the training and coaching that management provides to employees, true managers know that they themselves are not perfect and can always improve their management skills. Most of us work with a variety of people, and all people require different levels and amounts of coaching and mentoring.

Everybody cares about what others think of them, it's human nature; but what if you could find out exactly how you are perceived as a manager in your organization? Think how you could use that information to motivate and engage your employees better.

Feedback programs can be a sensitive subject for all parties involved because of fear. Managers fear they are not doing a sufficient job and employees fear if they are honest, they will get in trouble for any negative feedback toward their manager.  

As a manager, you may think you are an outstanding communicator, but how do you rank on communication in the eyes of the people you interact with daily? How are you perceived as a manager?

The feedback system I use looks at how a manager thinks she/he conducts work on a daily basis and how the employee perceives the work of this manager. The assessment and reports for both parties (manager and employees) focus on two important factors:

• Strengths - The areas you and your employees attribute to your strengths. The "keep doing" items

• Perception by Others - The areas where you may not be as strong. This could be one of two things. (1) A Performance Gap: e.g. when you think you're delegating work effectively on a day-to-day basis; but, your staff is dissatisfied with your method of delegation.  (2) A Perception Gap: e.g. You may be delegating work effectively each day, but employees perceive that you are not

Whether this type of issue or another, this process generates reports that provide you with a positive direction on how to change areas for improvement and raise your game. Once you know what your employees are thinking, you can modify behavior, change the way you manage, work on your skills, increase productivity, decrease turnover and immediately enhance your leadership style for greater success. 

Remember, we are only focused on strengths and development areas, not weaknesses. It is not about attacking managers; it is about helping them develop skills by means of personalized strength analysis reports and a personal development plan that makes sense.

Regarding the example of delegating work effectively, perhaps, it would be helpful to convene a weekly meeting where employees outline the work that was assigned to them so everyone can see how you are delegating the workload. The team will have a clear outline of what is required of them and possibly notice ways they can offer suggestions and help each other work more effectively.