Personal Skills Assessment and Analysis Report

Developing optimally effective managerial skills can be a challenging enterprise in any industry, and it is axiomatic that it is essential to measure individual strengths and weaknesses in order to identify strengths to build on as well as opportunities for improvement. To this end, this paper provides a review of the relevant literature concerning effective management practices in general and how these practices can be leveraged to contribute to the creation of a high-performance organization. In addition, a self-assessed personal assessment of management skills questionnaire developed by Whetton and Cameron (2010) is used to translate the insights these results in order provide to determine what steps are needed to optimize management skills in the future. Finally, a summary of the research and important findings concerning effective managerial skills and the need for ongoing personal assessment of management skills are provided in the conclusion.

II. Critical Management Skills

Because a growing body of evidence confirms the relationship between effective management practices and organizational performance, a number of researchers have sought to identify more generalized managerial skills that are regarded as critical for practitioners today. For example, based on his systematic review of the relevant literature, Schachter (2010) emphasizes that, "Not only do [managers] need to know [their] organization and the industry within which it operates, [they] have to be skilled at planning, organizing, supervising and leading staff through difficult times" (p. 33).

These so-called hard skills assume even greater relevance and importance during periods of adversity or downturns in the economy when these conditions can result in ineffective managerial practices and the loss of market share (Schachter, 2010). Although every manager's working environment is unique, researchers have identified three critical skill areas: communication, empowerment, and political acumen (Schachter, 2010). These three critical management skills are described further below.

Communication Skills. Communication skills are closely associated with virtually all other areas of professional and personal development as well as all types of managerial skills (Schachter, 2010). Described as a "soft skill" by Singh (2013), communication skills are as important as hard skills for managers today. In order to managers to be proficient at hard skills, they must first become proficient at communication (Schacter, 2010). Becoming proficient in this area, though, means more than simply sending and receiving messages, of course, and rather relates to developing and sustaining a positive attitudinal approach to communication. In this regard, Schachter emphasizes that, "This means managers must be aware of the need to communicate and be willing and able to share information with others who need it in a meaningful way" (p. 33).

Effective communication skills also reflect the ability to take the time to actually focus on what others are saying before formulating a response. For instance, according to Singh (2013), "It is important to think before reacting, listen actively, assure a fair process of problem solving, attack the problem rather than the person, accept responsibility and use direct communication" (p. 22). In addition, one of the most important communication skills needed by managers today is the ability to use a wide array of communication channels in order to ensure that all intended recipients not only receive the message but understand it as well (Schacter, 2010). This is an especially critical skill when there are large numbers of recipients are from diverse educational, experiential and cultural backgrounds who may understand communications in different ways, or even not at all (Schacter, 2010). Consequently, a concomitant of this skill is the ability to identify what communication strategies tend to work best with different groups and to determine how suboptimal strategies can be improved (Schachter, 2010

Empowering Others. Another managerial skills that is commonly described as critical in the management literature is the ability to empower others. In this regard, Schachter reports that, "Managers must empower staff to improve customer service and maintain a competitive edge" (2010, p. 34). Because empowerment begins with access to requisite information, managers must be proficient at determining what information is required in order for subordinates to make informed decisions and formulate problem-solving strategies and be accountable for them (Schachter, 2010).

Political Skills: Sometimes referred to as "people skills," managers need fine-tuned political skills in order to be effective in the workplace because they provide them with the ability to persuade and influence others to achieve the desired outcome as well as the ability to interpret otherwise-nuanced communications (Schacter, 2010). According to Moss and Barbuto (2010),...
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Some managers, however, disdain the need for political skills because they regard them as being manipulative (Moss & Barbuto, 2010). An important point made by Schachter, though, is that, "Political skills do not mean manipulating others but rather facilitating personal and professional relationships and enable managers to see the big picture as well as the details" (2010, p. 34). When viewed from this perspective, it is apparent that political skills represent an essential part of a manager's critical skills repertoire.

In many ways, however, political skills may be the most difficult for many managers to develop because the analyses that are involved typically transcend the conventional practices to which they are accustomed, but these skills are also among the most important in order for managers to be truly effective. For example, one aspect of political skills is the ability to identify those within an organization that can provide the power base needed to effect meaningful change, even if these individuals lack the formal authority needed to approve such change (Schachter, 2010). In sum, finely tuned political skills not only facilitate more effective communications by helping managers gain a better understanding of the views of others, they can also help them formulate more effective strategies to overcoming resistance as well as gaining additional support and resources (Schachter, 2010).

Other experts agree that the foregoing critical skills form the foundation of effective management in the modern workplace, but add some other critical skills as well include the following:

• A high level of self-awareness;

• Knowledge of human motivation;

• The ability to allocate limited resources perceptively;

• A well-developed personal vision and the ability to sell it;

• A well-developed set of personal values;

• A commitment to community;

• Established knowledge and learning networks;

• The ability to effectively analyze and package complex information; and, • The ability to make decisions in conditions of extreme ambiguity (Powell, 2009, p. 28).

Taken together, it is clear that managers today require a comprehensive skills portfolio to compete effectively, communicate accurately and timely, and contribute in meaningful ways to the success of their organizations. As noted above, in order to evaluate any manager's skills set, it is first important to measure them. Therefore, in order to gain some fresh insights into the author's own managerial skills at present in order to identify strengths and weaknesses, an analysis of the author's profile of managerial skills using the personal assessment of management skills questionnaire is provided below.

III. Profile of Managerial Skills: Your Picture

The results of the administration of the personal assessment of management skills (PAMS) association version questionnaire are presented below.

Results of the Developing Self-Awareness Scale. The PAMS mean for self-disclosure and openness was slightly higher than for awareness of self (5.5 vs. 4.66, respectively). Moreover, the score of 3 on question 4, "I have a good sense of how I cope with situations that are ambiguous and uncertain," was significantly lower than the overall PAMS mean of 4.66 for this category. This is an important component of an overall management skills profile because truly effective managers must be able to respond appropriate even in times of ambiguity and uncertainty. For instance, Sambasivan (2012) emphasizes that, "Dealing with uncertainty is very important as a component of the management style or repertoire. The individual has to have greater tolerance to the ambiguity of uncertainty and yet be able to steer the business with success" (p. 57). Although the overall score for this PAMS scale was relatively strong, the low score in this particular area may warrant additional professional development attention in the future.

Results of the Managing Stress Scale. The means for the eliminating stressors and developing resiliency measures were slightly lower than for short-term coping (5.5 vs. 6, respectively). These relatively strong scores across the entire scale reflect a management strength since unmitigated stress can adversely affect managers' workplace performance as well their physical and psychosocial health (Robindra & Pradhan, 2014). This management strength has the potential to help offset, at least in part, the relatively low score on the uncertainty and ambiguity issue discussed above.

Results of the Creative Problem-Solving Scale. The results of the creative problem-solving scale show the mean for rational problem solving category was the highest at 6, the mean for the creative problem solving…