How to Be an Even Better Manager: A Complete A‐Z of Proven Techniques and Essential Skills

Citation

Mann, S. (2006), "How to Be an Even Better Manager: A Complete A‐Z of Proven Techniques and Essential Skills", Leadership & Organization Development Journal, Vol. 27 No. 8, pp. 718-719. https://doi.org/10.1108/01437730610709327

This new edition of Michael Armstrong's practical management guide has been revised and updated to cover 50 specific areas of management in a clear and relevant way. Each is self‐contained and can be dipped into, but all fall into the three broad categories in which any manager needs to be competent:

1. 1.

   managing people;

2. 2.

   managing activities; and

3. 3.

   managing and developing yourself.

Each area is covered in a separate chapter, making a whopping 50 chapters in total (11 more than the previous edition). However, some chapters are barely three pages long, making this a rather “bitty” read for some, but an easy‐to‐dip‐into potpourri for others, depending on your perspective. Chapters cover the usual suspects, such as “how to be more asssertive”, “how to delegate”, “how to develop people” (which, at only four pages long, seems a rather over‐optimistic chapter heading), “how to handle difficult people” (three pages!), “how to manage time/conflict/stress”, etc. There are also one or two less common topics thrown in, such as “how to be political”, “how to think clearly” and “how to get job engagement”.

Overall, this is a rather fragmented book that may not offer depth for anyone other than a fairly novice manager. Armstrong attempts to cover very broad topics in a few pages and sometimes this works; often, however, there is the risk of leaving the reader frustrated as they are offered a “teaser” about a topic without really being given the opportunity to tackle it properly.

Having said that, the book does deal with a wide range of issues and I am struggling to think of anything that has been left out (perhaps something on managing virtual teams is needed). Many issues are dealt with in detail and offer a good introduction or reminder of key issues. How to be an Even Better Manager is a good text to dip in and out of, to keep in the resource library and should be essential reading for the new manager.