As you rise up the ranks in your chosen career or company, there will generally be a greater responsibility placed on you to manage the needs and performance of others within the organisation. As with any skill, everyone has their own techniques and level of natural expertise in people management, and it is a skill that is a critical part of career progression. Here are some tips on how to manage the people in your organisation more effectively.

Everybody's different
Possibly the most important initial step in successful people management is to realise that people are, indeed, different. Whilst all professionals generally share some common motivations, desires and attributes, you will get the best out of people if you treat them as individuals. Management techniques that work with one professional may not work with another, so take time to get to know your team well, and you'll soon pick up on individual characteristics that can help you manage them better.

Set the standard
Good management techniques are borne out of mutual respect and appreciation between all parties, so all management should begin by the manager setting a standard that he or she would expect from others. Employees can quickly lose respect for a manager that doesn't display the abilities or commitment to undertake tasks that they themselves are required to do. If you want people to work long, focused hours and take pride in their work, then ideally you should demonstrate that you have these capabilities too, and are leading from the front.

Invest in good relations
It sounds obvious, but being a good manager of people is not merely about making successful demands of them. There are a few tried and tested ways of ensuring that your team performs well, but arguably the best way of achieving this is to invest in each personal relationship, going out of your way to do things purely for the benefit of the team and its individuals. If you don't manage to do this, there is a danger that your team will solely associate you with requests for work, and this may create a negative psychology in the very people that you are trying to manage.

Careful critiques  
Your evaluation and feedback of the work produced by your colleagues is one of the key areas by which you can either greatly increase loyalty, performance and respect, or greatly diminish it. Human beings hate to be criticised, and will generally go on the defensive when placed in this position, so choose your words carefully if you want to enthuse rather than deflate.

A helping hand
Successful managers have a tendency to be able to display empathy for a colleague's challenges, and in many cases are in a position to offer proactive help and support. This is an essential part of management, as people generally respond well to professional relationships where the other party seems to be doing things for them. Most employees will gladly undertake tasks if they feel that management is looking out for their own personal interests.

Communication is king
Good communication is vital to good management techniques, and it is therefore essential that you establish a line of regular communication that suits both you and your team. Generally speaking, you should aim to set aside some dedicated time to communicating management news to the team, and allowing them to update you on their projects at least once a week. Sessions like this encourage team spirit, a feeling of togetherness and can be a highly effective way of identifying challenges and celebrating successes in a timely manner.

Get people to arrive at your conclusions
Instead of being a domineering manager who insists that things are done exclusively your way, it can often be helpful to use a little reverse psychology when managing people. If your approach is strictly to dictate, you may well encounter resistance, although if you set out your reasons for wanting something done a particular way, and encourage the buy in of your team, they will be much more willing to engage. Better still, create an open discussion where your team proactively suggest the route that you had initially intended. In this way, you can praise staff for their initiative whilst also getting things done the way you want them.