The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy’. It is true that the real judge of success is the ability of an individual to exercise perseverance, presence of mind and sound decision making skills during tough times. Controversy, though not welcomed, tends to make the person stronger. Not to mention, it makes an individual more experienced and prepared to address a countless number of challenges.

The managers of any firm, big or small, are often placed in such situations where their decision making skills are put to the test. Not all of them succeed but those who do are rewarded with prestige and a sense of accomplishment which they carry on throughout their career. Inspired by the roles played by some leaders of the business world this essay will explain the vital roles of managers and managerial skills. Effective managers might have more of one set of qualities than others but ideally a manager develops a balance of both managerial and leadership qualities. Nevertheless they never forfeit the ability of taking corrective action when necessary. If managers are placed in challenging situation, they clearly need to possess extraordinary skills in order for them to be successful.

There are many examples of managers with such skills. Consider Mark Zuckerberg who is twenty-eight years old and the CEO of Facebook. As a manager he has had to be rational about his decisions and aware of how to solve problems. (1) “The first steps to becoming a really great manager are simply common sense; but common sense is not very common.” On the other hand, Richard Branson (Founder of Virgin group) eventually started a record shop in Oxford Street in London in 1971. Year by year he expand his business, from small to large scale.

Later he diversified his business to include services such as virgin trains, virgin mobile and virgin airlines. He stresses the importance of time management skills and considers them to be a key quality of effective managers. (4) Warren Buffett, arguably the great investment managers in the world. Buffett owns Berkshire Hathaway, National Indemnity Company and National Fire & Marine Insurance Company and winds up investment partnerships to concentrate on Berkshire. He purchased major stakes in McDonald’s and owns the 6th largest U.S. automobile insurer. He is an icon for stock selection and long-term investments and one of the most influential financial people in the world.

The people discussed in examples of the ultimate managers follow the basic functions of management; there are four main functions of management. They include planning, organizing, leading, and controlling. All four functions are greatly important and no one function has greater priority than another. These four functions must be coordinated to have the management operate as a whole. Managers must continue to check on the functions of their subordinates and their tasks to make sure that they are being achieved and constantly updated. Different organizations and businesses require the different skills in the managers in order to handle the business environment and to make them successful in the market.

So there are different types of skills which the managers need in order to exercise the skills in the person in the different people. So managers have to deal with a lot of problems which requires their special skills. (4) Katz’s theory of managerial skills states three different skills namely conceptual skill, interpersonal skill, and technical skill. Those three managerial skills are used by different managers in different ways to deal with contentious and challenging issues. Furthermore a top manager needs to have more conceptual skill than technical skill. They have to think about the future of the company (goal and objectives).

This requires long term planning and execution skills. Any small activities that support to achieve the goal and objectives are done by their employees. Top managers always think about the long life of the business. Middle managers perform more using their interpersonal skill. They have to meet many people, so they need interpersonal skills to communicate with people. These managers often take up roles as negotiators. Finally, lower level managers need technical skills in their job. The lower level manager deals with small activities that may lead to achieve the goal and objectives. These three managers must have a good relationship each other, so that the objectives and goals of the firm can be achieved.

These are the example of managers at the very highest level, (2) Henry Ford of Ford Motors and (3) Rupert Murdoch Chairman and CEO of News Corporation are excellent examples of top level managers. Apart from the controversies surrounding his corporation, Murdoch, like many others, has served at every level of management. Ford’s understanding of the production process, based on his insights as a lower manager, gave him to ability to refine and improve the production of cars on an unprecedented scale. Such exposure gives top level managers a complete understanding of the functions of a business and this knowledge is essential to ensure the efficiency and productivity of any top level manager. Hence it is essential for top managers to have climbed the managerial ladder in order to possess true knowledge and skill of their expertise.