Organisation, analysis, and the planning of various company operations are just some of the broad scope of business management. And to effectively run or manage a business, it is important to keep up with the latest trends and utilise research studies that have collected empirical data to support their claims. Here are some findings focusing on the leadership and staffing aspects of business administration that will be helpful as you strategise and plan for the months ahead.
Leadership and Significance
Businesses use a variety of strategies to survive, compete, and expand. When it comes to setting corporate goals, strategic and tactical goals must go hand in hand. A strategic plan outlines your long-term goals, while a tactical plan outlines the steps you’ll take to get there. Focusing on the humanistic side of business management, studies contend the need to establish a sense of significance for you and your staff.
A study conducted by experts at the University of Sussex and the University of Greenwich found that poor management is the leading destroyer of feelings of significance which in turn affects loyalty and productivity of employees. Their study highlighted that if the employees’ work has a greater impact on others than on themselves, employees are more likely to consider it meaningful labour. Even in the most difficult of circumstances, many people find their profession to be a source of great significance.
When people can look back on their finished projects and draw connections between their accomplishments and a broader sense of life purpose, they are more likely to feel a feeling of purposefulness. The authors added that despite difficulties the benefits for individuals and organisations that accrue from meaningful workplaces might be even larger than what is perceived.
Effective Staff Management
Empathetic business leaders foster an atmosphere of trust and justice in the workplace by empowering their employees to do their best work. Businesses should adjust their training and recruitment efforts to promote managers who exhibit empathy, integrity, and trustworthiness. In return, they profit from fostering a happy and loyal work environment.
Additionally, research asserts that organisations might benefit from developing or reinforcing a culture that positively encourages trust, fairness, and high-quality working relationships between managers and employees.
Diversity
According to a recent study, fostering diversity makes a business more innovative in terms of product inventions, patents created, and patent citations. With that in mind, it is best to take advantage of the remote working environment and source employees from different regions. This diversity implies a more creative working environment where the company can foster and improve ideas and revise the standard operating procedures of the business.
In line with this, employee-employer relationships have significantly evolved at the onset of the pandemic. According to a new Cornell University research, working an unconventional schedule and logging in at all hours of the day is not always good for the 21st-century workforce. The work-from-home setup showed promising opportunities for companies and employees, but it is still important to minimise its downsides such as employing methods that increase productivity at home and restore a good work-life balance.
In relation to this, a recent study by the University of Otago found that the easiest way to get someone to finish the tasks is to avoid setting a deadline at all, and if you must establish a deadline, keep it brief. Supporting this claim is a new research from the University of Texas at Austin where software development teams that are allowed to approach their projects however they like are more productive and have happier clients than teams that adhere to a central corporate standard.
Direction
The pandemic has had a significant impact on industrial enterprises’ earnings, and these businesses have adjusted their business practises, including adopting open innovation tools and procedures. A research study found that small businesses that rely on business-to-business subcontracting for the majority of their revenue were shown to be better equipped to cope with economic uncertainty than larger organisations.
It’s no wonder that social media has become a rising target for marketers because the leading social media platforms have billions of users. More so, your business can utilise all available data and set up a marketing campaign in the right paid media environment, and even create or amplify a good landing page for your business.
Despite its growing significance, social media advertising is becoming increasingly competitive. A multichannel organic strategy for small businesses is the best way to gain an audience and spread word of mouth about the brand.
Final Thoughts
High-performing businesses are distinguished from the pack by their ability to successfully navigate the route from planning to execution. And the best way to learn and to reach the business’ desired numbers is to rely on data and to carefully devise strategies that propel the company forward through effective people management.