20 Key Attributes General And Operations Managers Need To Succeed In Their Career

by Noah Smith

Tuesday, August 25, 2015

General and operations managers plan, direct, or coordinate the operations of public or private sector organizations. Duties and responsibilities include formulating policies, managing daily operations, and planning the use of materials and human resources, but are too diverse and general in nature to be classified in any one functional area of management or administration, such as personnel, purchasing, or administrative services.

The core tasks that general and operations managers are likely to carry out include:

Oversee activities directly related to making products or providing services.
Direct and coordinate activities of businesses or departments concerned with the production, pricing, sales, or distribution of products.
Review financial statements, sales and activity reports, and other performance data to measure productivity and goal achievement and to determine areas needing cost reduction and program improvement.
Manage staff, preparing work schedules and assigning specific duties.
Direct and coordinate organization's financial and budget activities to fund operations, maximize investments, and increase efficiency.
Establish and implement departmental policies, goals, objectives, and procedures, conferring with board members, organization officials, and staff members as necessary.

In order to successfully forge ahead with their careers, analysts in a survey carried out by U.S. Department of Labor (via O*NET) have marked out the following as important attributes that general and operations managers would need. These attributes have been selected from characteristics and requirements strongly associated with the occupation. They are

Abilities: Enduring attributes of the individual that influence performance
Interests: Preferences for work environments. Occupational Interest Profiles (OIPs) are compatible with Holland's (1985, 1997) model of personality types and work environments. Six interest categories are used to describe the work environment of occupations: Realistic, Investigative, Artistic, Social, Enterprising, and Conventional. An OIP consists of six numerical scores indicating how descriptive and characteristic each work environment (or interest area) is for an occupation
Knowledge: Organized sets of principles and facts applying in general domains
Skills: These include basic skills, which are developed capacities that facilitate learning or the more rapid acquisition of knowledge. Plus cross-functional skills, which are developed capacities that facilitate performance of activities that occur across jobs
Style: Personal characteristics that can affect how well someone performs a job

We have listed out attributes which were scored 80% or more in terms of importance by the analysts.

Having a strong preference for enterprising work environments. Enterprising occupations frequently involve starting up and carrying out projects. These occupations can involve leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes they require risk taking and often deal with business.
Attribute Type: Interests Score: 100%

Being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.
Attribute Type: Style Score: 94.6%

Being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.
Attribute Type: Style Score: 90.4%

A willingness to lead, take charge, and offer opinions and direction.
Attribute Type: Style Score: 90%

Maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations.
Attribute Type: Style Score: 87.6%

Being honest and ethical.
Attribute Type: Style Score: 87.2%

A willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges.
Attribute Type: Style Score: 87.2%

Accepting criticism and dealing calmly and effectively with high stress situations.
Attribute Type: Style Score: 87%

Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
Attribute Type: Knowledge Score: 86.6%

Being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.
Attribute Type: Style Score: 85.2%

Persistence in the face of obstacles.
Attribute Type: Style Score: 84.8%

Analyzing information and using logic to address work-related issues and problems.
Attribute Type: Style Score: 84.4%

Being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace.
Attribute Type: Style Score: 84.2%

Establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks.
Attribute Type: Style Score: 81.4%

The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
Attribute Type: Abilities Score: 80%

The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
Attribute Type: Abilities Score: 80%

Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
Attribute Type: Knowledge Score: 80%

Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
Attribute Type: Skills Score: 80%

Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Attribute Type: Skills Score: 80%

Talking to others to convey information effectively.
Attribute Type: Skills Score: 80%