The question of \u201cwhat makes a good manager?\u201d is no longer being answered by recruiters writing job specs. Today, the qualities of good management are being dictated by employees who are voting with their feet. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Yes, there\u2019s a reason global staff turnover rose to 20% in 2024!<\/a>) <\/p>\n\n\n\n If you\u2019re an HR leader, then you already know that the bar has shifted. Gone are the days when employees quietly tolerated outdated management styles. These days, it\u2019s what employees want from their managers that matters. <\/p>\n\n\n\n So today we\u2019re exploring some of the biggest \u201cpull\u201d factors for employees \u2013 skills and traits that they really want to see in their managers, and why these qualities are so important if you\u2019re trying to build a loyal, happy, and high-performing team. <\/p>\n\n\n\n But first, let\u2019s just look at how the \u201cideal\u201d management style has shifted. In the 80\u2019s, for example, managers were expected to lead with authority \u2013 top-down, hierarchical, and often fear-based. In the 90\u2019s, management did seem to at least incorporate employee recognition<\/a> into their styles, but it was very much a reward-for-output type of system, and highly transactional. Even in the 00\u2019s, despite the rise in popularity of \u201ctransformational leadership styles\u201d, ideas like coaching, emotional intelligence, and cultural awareness were still considered meaningless buzzwords by many direct managers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n However, for a while now, it\u2019s been recognized that managers account for up to 70% of variance in team engagement<\/a>. And with the employee voice<\/a> being more influential than ever \u2013 think pulse surveys, platforms like Glassdoor, etc \u2013 those \u201csoft\u201d skills have now become a hard requirement for any thriving management team. <\/p>\n\n\n\n We\u2019ve identified the top 8 skills employees are looking for today. Newsflash: none of these skills are new, revolutionary ideas. They\u2019re all skills you\u2019ll be familiar with \u2013 but they\u2019re not necessarily skills that have always been associated with strong management.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n So we thought we\u2019d take a few minutes to show you why these skills are so desirable in the modern workplace, and the improvements you\u2019re likely to see if you incorporate these into your criteria when selecting candidates for management roles. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Thanks to hybrid working models, huge generational diversity, and rapid disruption from the invasion in AI, employees now expect managers who can pivot, listen, and incorporate new ideas \u2013 especially those from front-line voices. <\/p>\n\n\n\n And although a lack of adaptability isn\u2019t necessarily going to result in mass-walkouts by staff, it may well impact your teams\u2019 performance metrics \u2013 a post by McKinsey in January 2025<\/a> revealed that companies reporting a high level of adaptability, also churned out engagement and innovation scores that were up to 6 times higher! <\/p>\n\n\n\n So if you have managers who insist on doing things \u201cthe way they\u2019ve always been done\u201d, then you may be stifling your workforce. Why not consider embedding some of this thinking into your 360\u00b0 reviews, or maybe even running a couple of hackathons that encourage innovation, and then rewarding the managers who act on ideas from team members? <\/p>\n\n\n\n Stagnation at work is no longer an option, and your employees now expect managers who are actively involved in their personal development. This is especially true in fast-changing industries, where personal development is vital to professional survival \u2013 but we have found it to be true across traditional industries, too. <\/p>\n\n\n\n When managers don\u2019t show team members a clear development path, those team members leave. If you want anecdotal evidence of this, just head over to Glassdoor or even Reddit, and read the thousands of stories from disgruntled workers complaining about quitting due to a lack of training, or because management are blocking progression routes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Or, if you prefer more academic evidence, then LinkedIn\u2019s 2025 Workplace Learning Report <\/a>cites \u201cproviding learning opportunities\u201d as the number one retention strategy for companies. <\/p>\n\n\n\n So ask yourself \u2013 are your managers actively involved in their team members\u2019 ongoing development? Because if they\u2019re not, you\u2019re likely going to feel it in your staff turnover calculations. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Empathy, awareness, and regulation of behaviour are crucial to wellbeing. And with burnout<\/a>, stress, and mental health now very real strategic HR concerns, a management team with high EQ scores is one of the best remedies to a struggling workforce. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Today, employees absolutely expect this from their bosses. They expect their managers to understand their concerns, and be sympathetic to their troubles. And they actively avoid teams where EQ is absent.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Countless reports support this. And when researchers surveyed 190 hospitality employees in Kashmir<\/a>, they found that the organizations with emotionally intelligent teams<\/a>, were the organizations managing significantly improve job satisfaction and reduce voluntary exits, proving that emotional regulation from your management can help to stabilise even the most hectic and high-stress teams. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Similar to how employees now expect high levels of EQ, they expect their managers to be good communicators. These skills matter massively, seeing as how managers are the primary translators of strategy into team experience! <\/p>\n\n\n\n But communication is more complicated (and essential) than ever before \u2013 and that\u2019s because employees expect management to not only understand physical body language and in-person interactions, but they also expect them to understand the nuances of non-verbal digital signals or cues.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n It can be isolating having no face-to-face contact for extended periods of time \u2013 which is why managers who cannot communicate digitally tend to accidentally upset team members. Even if what they said was meant with good intentions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Good digital communication from your managers is also vital for getting a competitive advantage in the hunt for top talent. This study by Prof Neha Agarwal and Dr Vijay Nimbalkar <\/a>goes as far as saying it is one of the most important factors in drawing in qualified candidates! <\/p>\n\n\n\n Get your managers communicating right, especially online and you\u2019ll improve trust, performance, recruitment and retention. But let your managers spout off poorly-thought-out tirades into your Microsoft Teams channels? You\u2019ll breed disengagement, confusion and mistrust. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Employees demand integrity from management. Blame culture is a fast-track to attrition, whereas managers who are willing to take responsibility for their mistakes, are way more likely to earn the trust, loyalty, and support of their team members.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n We\u2019ve talked about this before, in the context of companies being \u201cdemocracies\u201d<\/a> \u2013 which is how most workers prefer to see their organizations, generally speaking. And in any democracy, one of the essential elements is the visibility and accountability of its leaders.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Oh, and it\u2019s worth noting that employees are more likely to take accountability for their own actions when they see that example being played out in management roles. And isn\u2019t a culture of transparency something we all want in our workplace? <\/p>\n\n\n\n This matters because a person\u2019s perception of fairness impacts their motivation and engagement levels. People want to be treated fairly, and most of the time, they want the same rules to apply to everyone. <\/p>\n\n\n\n We\u2019re not surprised to see employees demanding this of their management in today’s world of work \u2013 it goes right back to Adams\u2019 Equity Theory, 1965<\/a>\u2026 which effectively states that a person is willing to work only as hard as they deem fair, based on how they are treated in comparison with others around them. And if they feel unfairly treated? They may not necessarily leave\u2026 but they\u2019ll certainly try to settle the score. And this can range from simple acts of protest like \u201cquiet quitting\u201d, to full-on acts of theft against the employer.\u00a0 Today, you can\u2019t just have a DEI policy on paper and expect employees to nod and smile. They expect their managers to live and breathe inclusivity in how they lead. Which means being culturally aware, actively supporting diverse team dynamics, and challenging biases (including their own).\u00a0 Managers who don\u2019t demonstrate cultural awareness risk isolating employees, missing out on valuable perspectives, and undermining belonging. But those who do? They build stronger teams, create safer work environments, and increase retention. So if you\u2019re not already tying DEI metrics into your manager evaluations, then now\u2019s the time. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Today\u2019s workforce is hyper-aware of how their managers\u2019 moods, stress levels, and behaviour affect the team environment. And why shouldn\u2019t they be? After all, it\u2019s been proven time and time again that a single stressed-out or reactive leader can tank morale<\/a> across an entire department. <\/p>\n\n\n\n This is especially true for Gen Z and younger millennials, who have no patience for what they see as \u201cemotional leakage\u201d from management. And a 2023 Gallup article<\/a> notes that declining manager engagement directly correlates with team disengagement and that meaningful one-on-one conversations and emotional connection from managers boost overall employee wellbeing<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n This means that managers can no longer afford to storm through their day unchecked. Emotional self-awareness is a baseline requirement, and managers need to know how their tone, behaviour, or even a single message in Slack can derail someone\u2019s focus \u2013 or make them feel unheard or devalued. <\/p>\n\n\n\n If the last decade has taught us anything, it\u2019s that promoting someone just because they\u2019re good at their job is no longer a viable management strategy. These days, the smartest organizations aren\u2019t asking, \u201cWho\u2019s the highest performer?\u201d<\/em> when filling management roles. They\u2019re asking, \u201cWho\u2019s the most trusted? Who builds culture? Who actually knows how to lead people?\u201d<\/em>\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n And that change is showing up in real, structural ways. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Promotion decisions are now driven by people-first metrics that are embedded into management pipelines. HR recognizes that hiring a manager who people want to work for is usually more valuable than hiring a manager who knows how to do that team\u2019s job. And as a result, we\u2019re seeing more and more companies include upward feedback<\/strong>, employee engagement scores<\/strong>, wellbeing indicators<\/strong>, and team sentiment data<\/strong> when evaluating potential managers. In some cases, these soft-skill indicators are weighted more heavily than traditional performance reviews. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Manager assessments are shifting, too. Forward-thinking companies are now using behavioural interviews, emotional intelligence testing, and even team simulation exercises to help determine whether someone\u2019s fit to run a team. <\/p>\n\n\n\nThe shift from command to connect <\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Once upon a time, managers were selected based on their technical skills. High performers were generally seen as good candidates to take charge of a team, because they knew how best to do the job.
But as you well know, this does not always bring the best results. And in years gone by, this approach has usually led to management styles that were not very people-focused. <\/p>\n\n\n\n8 key skills employees want from their manager \u2013 and why they matter\u00a0<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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So, if your managers treat certain people more favourably than others, and it shows? That\u2019s not going to go down well with the rest of your team. Take a look at your policies, do a cross-team performance calibration, and send your managers into an effective bias training program!\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
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Employees notice when this isn\u2019t happening. And according to a report published by Harvard Business Review, inclusive leaders directly improve team performance, commitment, and decision-making<\/a> \u2013 particularly in multicultural and cross-functional teams. So yes, this stuff has real impact.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
How organizations are responding: Manager selection is changing <\/h2>\n\n\n\n