In this assignment, we are going to discuss the topic i.e. “a good manager is always a good leader”. Generally, leaders and managers are considered two different individuals and their roles are also ascertained differently. Managing is one of the most important function that is performed in an organization, and it is to be performed with diligence and mindfulness.

Literature review of Good managers, are always good leaders

In the following discussion we analyzed every aspect related to the management. Firstly, we checked out the individual attributes of a leader and a manger, then we have also given a brief detail of the management theories which tells us the different ways in which management can be done. then we gave arguments on our assumption that a good manager is always a good leader and it is not possible for one to be good at managing but not good at leading.

Who is a manager?

A manager is that person of the organization, who is responsible for directing the activities of the staff. The work that managers perform is of varying levels, and have different names for it. This role is very significant for the organization. At the same time, he is responsible for planning, coordinating, producing and marketing. An organization’s fate depends highly on the abilities of the manager, in using the resources available the right way to achieve the business’s goals. In wealth generating the role of the manager is pivotal. The business world is always changing, advancements come every day in production, financial setups and marketing techniques and a manager should be competent enough to compete with it.

Managerial functions of Good managers, are always good leaders

Functions like planning, directing, staffing, and controlling is the work of the manager. For running a corporation smoothly and for achieving the objectives of the enterprise these tasks are very crucial. For setting the goals of the organization and setting the strategies of the organization, planning is required and that is done by the managers. The function of organization that is performed by the manager, that helps determine what tasks should be done, how should they be done, how the grouping of the tasks need to be done, and where the decisions should be made is called organization. The function of directing involves giving the instructions and motivating the other employees to accomplish their tasks. (Vankatesh, n.d.)

Skills of a manager of Good managers, are always good leaders

A number of jobs are the responsibility of a manager, for performing all of those jibs the right way, it is important that a manager should have the required skill set, following are the attributes of an ideal manager;

· Physically fit-he should be physically fit, and have power enough to handle all the staff around.

· A visionary- conveying the mission of the organization to other is one great quality a manager must possess, he must have a clear mind and thinking. To be a great manger, having a clear vision is nit enough but be able to convey it to others is also important. It is reasonable to think that, what is the value of a vision if it is not understood properly.

· Being responsible-A manager should be responsible for whatever he does, while doing his tasks, he must have enough mind and strength to make decisions timely and in the betterment of the organization, and afterwards should also be ready to bear the consequences of it. It is also important to note that the manager should be able to distribute power among his subordinates. A manager should empower his employees, while not depriving himself of it.

· Be the commander- The manager is the person who is in command. He should have the ability to command others and get them to work, he should be able to settle conflicts if one arrives, after al nothing could be more harmful than a team having a directionless captain.

· Right decisions at the right time- One of the most significant requirements of leadership is taking the decisions required on the right time. The result of a manager’s choices could lead a company to success or failure.

· Courageous-Managers are the people who have to face the problems from the front a person lacking courage cannot do it. It short it means how to tackle the storm when the time comes, it involves taking things for what they really are and not hiding from them but finding a solution for them.

· Leadership- It is the ability to gather and guide the organization towards a common goal, while also gaining mutual trust. This also means being the in charge, taking command, having the vision, and encouraging the subordinates.

· Being intellectual- A manager who always want to learn and evolve with time is the one who would also take his organization to the path of success. Such a manger when provided with resources will do the best possible thing with it, that is in favor of the organization.

· Political sense- A manger with a political sense will be able to take decisions that are in line with the political environment going on.

· Being an empath- A manger has to deal with people all the time, the quality of empathy will make a manager get to know the employee on a personal level and be able to structure things in a way that is suitable to both the organization and the employees.

· Having humility for others- Humility means being able to recognize the mistakes you did and be able to make them right without any excuses. It also means making others feel easy and encouraging them to do the best they can.

· Being enthusiastic- A manager is the pivotal force of any organization. He should be able to make others happy and motivate them when they feel low. A manger with a negative personality can not make any good to the organization.

· Delegating and building trust- a great manager isn’t the one who wants to do all by himself, instead a great one is who knows when to delegate, whom to delegate and whom to trust. He knows interpersonal skills well and use them the right way.

· Problem solver- a good manager is a problem solver he is knows that there will be difficulties in the way but he doesn’t fear them, and deal with them in the best way possible. Because to be successful an organization can not just see things happening around them, they have to take actions and tackle things that are in the best interest for them.

· Not hesitant- in today’s world the hesitant one’s are left behind, and others go and take their place even if they are less in talent. The reason of being hesitant is either perfectionism, fear of risk and procrastination, and all of these are just tools to delay things from happening. A manager should not be like that and do what needs to be done.

· Well surrounded- success comes from working together as a team, undoubtedly. One of the qualities of a manger should be that he must know, what kind of people he should surround himself with. He should be able to make the right judgement about people and be able to design teams that are productive. (Dulude, n.d.)s

Great managers are leaders with simple charismatic figure head wo inspire and lead the followers and subordinates. The subset of management is leadership. The good manager must have good skills of leadership that urge anyone under them to work hard and move the project. The main difference between managers and leaders is that leaders have followers that follow them in different cases while the manager work with others and make them work under his order. In case of successful business owners, it requires a strong manager as well as leader that can force the team to work under his commands for the better vision of success (FOTACHE, et al., 2011). The improved skills of managers make them great leaders. The required personality traits are clear vision, integrity, courageous, humility, honesty and most importantly clear focus. The great leaders help all the surrounding people to achieve their goals and they never feel insecure while hiring people with better vision. The great leaders take pride in any accomplishment of his team members and help them in further improvement. The great leader is blessed with art of motivating the people and work to achieve the goal. They can define business settings that direct colleagues and workers to meet the needs of company (Strategyex. co. uk, 2020). The eight common personality traits of high scoring managers are mentioned below,

1. Good coach of Good managers, are always good leaders

2. Empower the team member but never involved in micromanage

3. Express interest for discussion with team members

4. Productive and result orientated

5. Good communication who listen and share ideas

6. Help all team members in career development

7. Clear vision and strategy

8. Important technical skills

Management theories of Good managers, are always good leaders

The concepts that are surrounding the management strategies are called management theories. These encompass, methodologies that can be worked upon in the modern-day organizations. Following we are discussing some management theories;

Systems management theory of Good managers, are always good leaders

It gives a different approach to the way organizations manage and plan. This theory says that business like the body of a human work together to function in the optimal way. This theory has coined out some features, on which the success of an organization depends, these are; independence, synergy, interrelationship between various systems (Chasen & Putnam, 2012).

Contingency management theory

This approach says that every organization needs a different approach of management, one approach can’t be applied to all organizations. Any chosen management approach is affected by several factors that may be internal or external. it has also coined out some factors that are likely to influence the structure of an organization; style of an organization, technology being used, leadership style (Franklin, et al., 2019).

Theory X and Y of Good managers, are always good leaders

Theory X and theory Y are two contrasting theories, they were developed by Dr McGregor, these theories are the representation of two styles of management, one is the, authoritarian and the other one is participative.

An organization whose employees show little or no passion for the work assigned to them, leaders will follow the authoritarian style of managing. And if the employees show passion and interest towards their work, the leaders will likely follow the participative style of management.

A pessimistic view is given by the Theory X, and it has the perspective that employees won’t work without incentives. Theory Y is known to have an optimistic point of view, it says that trusty and collaborative relationship can be built between management and employees (Helfert, 2001).

Scientific management theory of Good managers, are always good leaders

This theory was given by Fredrick Taylor, who was a mechanical engineer. He was of the perspective that forcing people to work diligently and work hard wasn’t the best policy to be adopted. He said that it is better to simplify tasks for the employees so that they can work easily. He said that the only, the reason an employee works is that he wants money, there is no other incentive he wants. He coined out the concept of “fair day wage” and from that time his concept is being used throughout the world. (corporate finance institute, n.d.)

Who is a good Leader?

A person who influences a group of people and sets their direction to achieve a particular goal is called a leader. It is the act of motivating the people to get their actions in line with their goals. Being ready to be the inspiration of others and directing the staff to work according to the strategy is called leadership.

Usually there is a difference between a manager and a leader, but in it can’t be said that a manager can’t be a good leader. Now we will look at the differences that are usually ascertained between a manager and a leader;

Differences between a manager and a leader
Leaders are visionary, managers are goal oriented

Leader tells others that a certain goal can be achieved and aspire and help others for turning that goal into reality. They have a thinking that is different and broader than others, and they think beyond what is easily possible. They acknowledge the importance of working in a team and have the belief that together more can be done than what is possible being alone.

Leaders welcome change, mangers rea in favor of status quo

Leaders will always be in favor of change. They know that innovation is necessary to succeed. They know that even if things are being doe smoothly there is still a better way of doing them. Mangers stick with the current systems and processes.

Leaders have uniqueness of Good managers, are always good leaders

Leaders like to be the way they are, they do not try to be someone they are not. They are very well aware of themselves and have unique ways of developing things, they are a different brand in their own self. They are comfortable in their own ways and are not afraid to stand out. They never fake things instead they are authentic.

Risk-takers of Good managers, are always good leaders

They always take risks. Failure is unknown to them. They know that the one’s who fail are the one’s who have the courage to try something new. On the contrary, mangers work to minimize any kind of risk and play safe. They have the motive to avoid getting into risky situations. They try to get control over the problems unlike leaders who try to embrace risks.

Leaders have a long -term thinking, unlike managers of Good managers, are always good leaders

They do what they say and have longer term scenario in their mind. Their goals are often distant and hard to achieve. Managers work for short term goals and that is what makes them different from leaders (Franklin, et al., 2019).

Leader grow, and managers remain stuck on the status quo

If you aren’t learning new concepts and skills every-day, you aren’t only staying stuck where you are, but also falling behind others who are learning every-day. They have a curiosity and strive to focus on the relevant things only and don’t let their focus lose in tis ever-evolving world.

Leaders develop relations

Leaders have an eye upon every single person they need to focus on in order to get to their goals. They now the important one’s and stick to them. They built people’s trust and loyalty towards them by, fulfilling their promises. (Arruda, 2020)

Best managers are always best leaders

Now, we will see the arguments on why and how the best managers are always best leaders?

Good time manager

A good manager and a good leader will always value his time and will never delay his tasks. They are quick responders, and prefer to communicate directly, and fast. The meetings they chair do always start on-time, proceed well and then end on-time. They made time their friend and not their enemy.

Good at managing details

Another trait of a good manger and also a good leader, is that they know their work well and have a near-accurate idea of the loop holes of their business. Knowing all the risks and threats they try to mitigate those risks. Good mangers and good leaders have an alert eye on the issue and handle them before they take the shape of a crisis.

Good at managing details of Good managers, are always good leaders

A good manager just like a good leader, do not get disturbed when they get any detailed tasks and in fact, they try to develop a command over the issue and handle it with grace and mindfulness instead of getting boggled. They never become the prisoners of the data they are working on and that’s what makes a manager a good leader as well (Franklin, et al., 2019).

Good at managing numbers

Good managers are always good with numbers, their financial sense comes naturally and sometimes it is developed. This would just be the case with a good leader.

Good people management skills

No good manager is deprived of this quality and neither a good leader lacks it. They always treat people as equal and give everybody respect. Now in people management skills they know that how much respect to give and how much distance to maintain, they will take care of their subordinates, at a decent distance and never try to get personal.

Honesty of Good managers, are always good leaders

It is as always been the best policy. A true leader and a true manager has the courage to stand alone, and take decisions that are right and not the decisions that are easy. Because a good manager and a good leader will be the one who people can trust, and only an honest person can be trusted.

Morality of Good managers, are always good leaders

Morality is an attribute that if said as the most important attribute of a good leader and a manager won’t be wrong. Managers have to deal with a lot of people and for that should have a high level of integrity. It is very important, because inly then would people be able to trust their manager and make him their leader. (Lipman, 2020)

Conclusion of Good managers, are always good leaders

In the above discussion we analyzed the functions of a manager and researched on the idea that a “Good Manager is always a Good Leader”, and we have come to the conclusion that yes a good manager and a good leader can be synonymous. Management is actually the administration of a business. It includes all kind of strategy formation, utilizing resources in an efficient way and leading the company on the right path to accomplish its goals. In the perspective of present work, the good management and leadership can be distinguished as different needs of organization and skills. Finding both characteristics in the same person are somehow difficult. The quintessential traits of leaders are to consider the situation that make sense in the dynamic and unstructured world. The leaders are supposed to handle everything happing in transition of industry.

References of Good managers, are always good leaders

Arruda, W., 2020. forbes. 9 Differences Between Being A Leader And A Manager.

Chasen, E. & Putnam, R. R., 2012. The Manager's Communication Toolbox. s.l.:American Society for Training and Developmen.

corporate finance institute, n.d. Management theories. [Online]
Available at: https://corporatefinanceinstitute.com/resources/careers/soft-skills/management-theories/

Dulude, C., n.d. https://atmanco.com/blog/leadership/15-qualities-great-manager/. [Online]
Available at: https://atmanco.com/blog/leadership/15-qualities-great-manager/

FOTACHE, G., FOTACHE, M., BUCŞĂ, R. C. & OCNEANU, L., 2011. The Changing Role of Managerial Accounting in Decision Making Process Research on Managing Costs. Economy Transdisciplinarity Cognition, 15(02), pp. 45-55.

Franklin, M., Graybeal, P. & Cooper, D., 2019. Principles of Accounting, Volume 2: Managerial Accounting, Volume 2. s.l.:OpenStax.

Helfert, E., 2001. Financial analysis tools and techniques: a guide for managers. 1 ed. New York: McGraw-Hill.

Lipman, V., 2020. Forbes. [Online]
Available at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/victorlipman/2014/03/05/6-unspectacular-but-solid-reasons-the-best-leaders-are-also-the-best-managers/#7dc569482976

Strategyex. co. uk, 2020. 15 Top Skills Project Managers Need. [Online]
Available at: https://www.strategyex.co.uk/blog/pmoperspectives/15-skills-project-managers-will-need-2015/

Vankatesh, n.d. yourarticlelibrary. http://www.yourarticlelibrary.com/management/manager/role-of-manager-in-an-organization/53144.