How to Manage a Wide Variety of Personalities at the Office

As a manager, getting a group of employees focused and on the same page can often feel like a tall order. You’ve got newbies and seasoned veterans, as well as a wide variety of personality types. If you can learn how to successfully manage these personality types, though, your job suddenly becomes much easier. Here are some tips for doing that:

First, identify the personality types that exist within your office

Some managers make the mistake of trying to work with all employees in the same way, not realizing that people operate differently. By identifying your employees’ unique personality types, you’ll be able to provide guidance for them much more effectively.

Show that you care

If you’re all business all the time, you’ll find that your team members aren’t nearly as responsive to you as they could be. While you don’t want to blur the lines and become a boss-friend hybrid, you should also make it a point to build relationships with your employees. Know about their ultimate career goals. Learn what they enjoy doing in the office and where they struggle. Seeing the big picture makes you a much more effective manager.

Find out how you can be more accommodating

As a manager, you want to keep morale within your office high. If there are ways you can do this without sacrificing your company’s productivity, make it a point to do so. If it’s easy to allow your employees to work from home from time to time, grant them this privilege. If flexible work schedules would be no big deal, then enact this policy. If it becomes clear that your employees would enjoy getting to know each other more, make it a point to plan office happy hours. When your team members feel as if their needs are being met, they’re much more likely to be invested and engaged at work.

How do you manage a diverse bunch of employees in your office? Share your strategies with us in the comments!

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