We take you through the fundamental steps to start and build a rewarding and long career in business management. These steps will take you through everything you require to start a management career.
What is a management career?
Management careers are in large part about learning to lead, managing others and running a company, often with many colleagues and stakeholders. However, there are also other areas that managers can work in:
- New organisational leaders are formed when current leaders reach retirement age or other milestone
- It’s a good time for business growth and new opportunities
- There are roles like business and marketing analysts, or leadership and HR.
There is also a great career for those who would like to work in non-executive roles, where managers have more autonomy and the ability to make decisions themselves. But even these roles require management and leadership skills.
How do you get started? The first step is understanding exactly what you want and what you need to get there.
Get the right education
There is no point going to university if you have no idea what you want to study. Read about the different careers, university courses and various management degree requirements so you can narrow down your options. With this information, you’ll know whether business management will be right for you.
Some schools offer higher education courses that will give you qualifications in business management. You might also have to study for a business management degree, or have other qualifications in marketing, finance and accounting to get a career in business management. Find out about further education and a college course.
Once you’ve determined what kind of career you’d like to pursue in business management, there are a few options.
Get the right experience
Get a job in any of the top recruitment agencies and start looking for management jobs. With the internet and social media these are available with the touch of a button. Choose to be a recruiter for a short time then consider different options in terms of career change. Choose a career you’re passionate about.
Before making any career decisions, consider what you’re passionate about. As a business manager you’ll be dealing with staff all day long so you should be a passionate person. Think about what motivates you and makes you tick. This will guide you towards the career you’re destined to have.
Learn your craft. You’ll be in a sales role so you need to know about customers, and sales in particular.
Make a good first impression
Your first job interview is one of the most important things that will influence your career. Before you step in the interview room you should dress in something professional. This means clothing appropriate to your position and an important thing is that you should dress conservatively.
You want to look like you’ve got your eye on the ball and are somebody serious in your field.
Nail the interview It’s important to remember that a good interview is not something where you are asking a million questions and know everything about the company. You are asking questions that will lead to a very important question – “are we a good fit?” That’s not always something that can be decided on the spot but it will depend a lot on the way you present yourself.
Build your own team
Once you start a management career, I am all for building your own team from the ground up, but make sure that you are working with the right people. You don’t want to work with just anyone in business, the best business people are usually chosen by themselves. I have seen businesses start from just one person.
That person may not be the best in that field, but when they put a team together, that person may just find that some of the members were more valuable than others. In fact, if that person is not the best person for the job, the rest of the team would have to work harder to prove their worth. It is better for you to pick only those best persons for you.
Understand the dynamics of business We often get too concerned with making money from what we do.
Go on, start a management career!
There are numerous jobs available for successful business managers in many industries. It will be a demanding, and demanding career that you will have to put in a great deal of work. You need to have an eye for detail, and your ears will be more than important.
If you want a rewarding and successful career in management, these steps will ensure you have all the right tools for the job.