MANAGERIAL SKILLS
A skill is an acquired and learned ability to translate knowledge into performance. It is the competency that allows for performance to be superior in the field in which the worker has the required skill. All managers need to possess technical, interpersonal, conceptual, diagnostic, communicational and political skills.
While technical and diagnostic skills refer to the knowledge and ability of understanding the processes involved and scientifically analyzing problems and opportunities, all other skills deal with people in one form or the other. These “human” skills are the most important assets of any successful manager.
It is the manager’s job to achieve the organizational objectives through the proper utilization of its human and material resources. However, since the material resources of equipment, capital, facilities, and information and so on can only be used by humans, the human resources are the most valuable assets of any organization. Accordingly, a manager must be highly skilled in the art of optimally utilizing the human resources. This art is universal in nature. In every walk of life, human skills are necessary for success. These various skills are briefly explained as follows:
Technical Skills:
These skills basically involve the use of knowledge, methods and techniques in performing a job effectively. This is a specialized knowledge and expertise which is utilized in dealing with day-to-day problems and activities. For example, engineers, accountants, computer programmers and systems analysts, all have technical skills in their areas and these skills are acquired through education and training.
This skill is highly necessary at the lower level of management and as one moves to higher levels of management, the relative importance of technical skills usually diminishes. This is so because unlike first level supervisors, managers