Top Management Skills Employers Value With Examples

Management team in meeting
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 10'000 Hours / Digital Vision / Getty Images

Organizations of all types require competent management in order to run smoothly and optimize the potential for profit and growth. Of course, management skills are applied to jobs labeled as "management positions" in the organizational chart, but are also vital for employees in many other roles.

For example, event planners need management skills to orchestrate events, secretaries need management skills to manage office processes, and benefits specialists need them to organize information sessions for employees.

What Are Management Skills?

Management skills are applied to a broad array of functions in areas like production, finance, accounting, marketing, and human resources.

Common components of management in different arenas include: selection, supervision, motivation and evaluation of staff, scheduling and planning of workflow, developing policies and procedures, measuring and documenting results for a group or department, solving problems, developing and monitoring budgets and expenditures, staying abreast of trends in the field, collaborating with other staff and departments, and leading and motivating employees.

Types of Management Skills

Most management skills are related to six fundamental functions: planning, organizing, coordinating, directing, leadership, and oversight.

Management Skills

The Balance

Planning

Individual managers may or may not be personally involved in drafting company policy and strategy, but even those who aren’t still must be able to plan. You might be given certain objectives and then be responsible for developing ways to meet those objectives.

You may need to adjust or adapt someone else’s plan to new circumstances. In either case, you’ll have to understand what your resources are, develop timetables and budgets, and assign tasks and areas of responsibility.

Note

Aspiring managers should volunteer to help their current supervisors with phases of departmental planning in order to hone their skills.

Planning programs for professional societies is another way to develop and document planning abilities. Mastering planning software, like NetSuite OpenAir, and project management software, like Workfront, can prove that you're able to tap technology that's instrumental to sound planning. College students should take on leadership positions with campus organizations to hone their planning skills.

  • Analyzing Business Problems
  • Analyzing Expenditures
  • Critical Thinking
  • Devising Plans for New Business
  • Development, Entrepreneurialism
  • Identifying the Interests and Preferences of Stakeholders
  • Microsoft Office,
  • Proposing Solutions to Business Problems
  • Problem Solving
  • Research, Qualitative Skills
  • Strategic Planning
  • Strategic Thinking
  • Tapping Information Technology to Facilitate Decision Making
  • Writing Proposals for Business Initiatives or Projects, Vision
  • Project Management
  • Utilizing Planning Software

Organizing

Organizing generally means creating structures to support or accomplish a plan. This might involve creating a new system of who reports to whom, designing a new layout for the office, planning a conference or event, building a strategy and planning around how to move through a project, or determining how to move toward deadlines or how to measure milestones.

Aspects of organization could also mean helping leaders under your guidance to manage their subordinates well.

Note

Organization is about planning and foresight, and it requires an ability to comprehend the big picture.

Identify processes, procedures, or events related to your department that could be improved, and demonstrate that you can re-design processes to create greater efficiency or enhance quality. Document procedures in a manual or spreadsheet for future use.

Leadership

The best managers are typically inspirational and effective leaders. They set the tone for their areas by demonstrating—through their actions—norms for staff behavior.

Note

Effective leaders often lead by example as much as by direction. Motivating others to action and productivity is a crucial element of effective leadership.

Clear communication of goals and expectations is also vital. Good leaders seek input from all stakeholders and recognize the contributions of other team members, and they give credit where credit is due. Good leaders draw consensus on group plans whenever feasible, and they delegate strategically to the best-qualified staff.

Develop leadership skills by volunteering to run point on projects. College students should volunteer to take on a leadership role with group projects, sports teams, and student organizations.

  • Delegation
  • Presentation
  • Humility
  • Networking
  • Confidence
  • High Energy
  • Clear Communication
  • Writing
  • Budgeting
  • Motivating Others
  • Problem Solving
  • Persuasion
  • Evaluating Talent
  • Supervision
  • Charisma
  • Integrity
  • Passion for Work
  • Networking

Coordinating

Managers must know what is happening, what needs to happen, and who and what are available to accomplish assigned tasks. If someone is miscommunicating, if someone needs help, or if a problem is being overlooked or a resource underutilized, a manager needs to notice and correct the issue. Coordinating is the skill that lets the organization act as a unified whole.

Coordination across departments and functions is also essential to a well-run organization that presents a unified face to constituents.

Develop a solid team orientation by close communication and cooperation with co-workers. Seek out opportunities to collaborate with other staff and departments.

Directing and Oversight

Directing is the part where you take charge and delegate (tell people what to do), give orders, and make decisions. Someone has to do it, and that someone could be you.

Note

Organization is about planning and foresight, and it requires an ability to comprehend the big picture.

It might include anything from reviewing business models and checking for inefficiencies to checking to make sure a project is on time and on budget. Oversight is the maintenance phase of management.

  • Achieving Goals,
  • Assessing Progress Towards Departmental Goals
  • Conflict Management
  • Creating Budgets for Business Units
  • Creating Financial Reports
  • Conflict Resolution
  • Decision Making
  • Delegation
  • Delivering Presentations
  • Division of Work
  • Empowerment
  • Engagement
  • Evaluating Job Candidates
  • Evaluating Employee Performance
  • Execution
  • Focus, Goal Orientation
  • Goal Setting
  • Hiring
  • Interacting with Individuals from Diverse Backgrounds
  • Interpersonal
  • Interpreting Financial Data
  • Interviewing Candidates for Jobs
  • Leadership
  • Motivation
  • Overcoming Obstacles
  • Productivity
  • Problem Solving
  • Professionalism
  • Providing Constructive Criticism
  • Recommending Cost-Cutting Measures
  • Recommending Process Improvements
  • Responding Favorably to Criticism
  • Responsibility
  • Training Employees
  • Verbal Communication

Management Skills List

The following is a comprehensive list of management skills to use in resumes, job applications, cover letters, and during job interviews.

  • Accuracy
  • Achieving Goals
  • Adaptability
  • Administrative
  • Analytical Ability
  • Assertiveness
  • Budget Management
  • Business Management
  • Business Storytelling
  • Collaboration
  • Communication
  • Conflict Management
  • Conflict Resolution
  • Coordination
  • Critical Thinking
  • Decision Making
  • Delegation
  • Development
  • Diplomacy
  • Discipline
  • Division of Work
  • Dynamic
  • Emotional Intelligence
  • Empathy
  • Empowerment
  • Energetic
  • Engagement
  • Execution
  • Facilitating
  • Finance
  • Financial Management
  • Flexibility
  • Focus
  • Genuine
  • Goal-oriented
  • Goal Setting
  • Hiring
  • Honesty
  • Influencing
  • Innovation
  • Interpersonal
  • Leadership
  • Legal
  • Listening
  • Logical Thinking
  • Logistics
  • Microsoft Office
  • Motivation
  • Negotiating
  • Networking
  • Nonverbal Communication
  • Obstacle Removal
  • Organizing
  • Patience
  • Persuasion
  • Planning
  • Presentation
  • Productivity
  • Problem Solving
  • Professionalism
  • Product Management
  • Project Management
  • Process Management
  • Public Speaking
  • Punctuality
  • Research
  • Responsibility
  • Qualitative Skills
  • Sales
  • Scheduling
  • Staffing
  • Strategic Planning
  • Strategic Thinking
  • Success
  • Tactfulness
  • Teaching
  • Team Building
  • Team Manager
  • Team Player
  • Teamwork
  • Technical Knowledge
  • Technology
  • Time Management
  • Training
  • Uncertainty Removal
  • Writing
  • Verbal Communication
  • Vision

Review Resume and Cover Letter Samples

How to Make Your Skills Stand Out

Match Your Skills to the Job: Skill requirements will vary based on the job for which you're applying, so be sure to read the job posting carefully and review our list of skills listed by job and type of skill to make the best match.

ADD RELEVANT SKILLS TO YOUR RESUME: Use the skills terms listed in this article to lead off statements describing tasks in your work descriptions or to create a skills section. Whenever possible, emphasize results that you helped achieve that point to effective leadership and management. Quantify results whenever you can. Cite recognition by others that showed you were respected as an effective leader, such as through awards, selection for key roles, promotions, and raises.

HIGHLIGHT SKILLS IN YOUR COVER LETTER: Emphasize how you used management skills to create value in various roles. Incorporate short statements pointing to key skills and results produced.

USE SKILL WORDS DURING JOB INTERVIEWS: Keep the top skills listed here in mind during your interview, and be prepared to give examples of how you've exemplified each. Each job will require different skills and experiences, so make sure you read the job description carefully, and focus on the skills listed by the employer. Prepare stories and anecdotes that demonstrate how you applied these skills to the benefit of affiliated organizations.

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