Running a business successfully has a lot of moving parts. Addressing and taking care of all the aspects of running an organization files on the management team. Human resources, upper and middle management, as well as organizational managers are all vital cogs in the clockwork of an organization. Organizational managers are among the most valuable members of these teams.
Getting into organizational management is quite an investment of time and energy, so it’s essential to know what you’re getting into, why it’s a great career path, and what kind of careers are available in the field.
We’ve put together a short guide to organizational management and how it can lead to a fruitful and satisfying career. Take a look below.
What Is Organizational Management?
At its most basic level, organizational leadership/management is where a leader helps an organization develop a strategic goal that positively affects the organization, its employees, and its customers. It involves high levels of communication and advanced interpersonal skills. Organizational leaders are people who use strategy and communication to accomplish a common goal. Instead of focusing exclusively on running the business, an organizational manager will spend time developing both the company and its employees individually. When compared to traditional management, an organizational manager does more for the organization overall with a stronger focus on the individual, whereas traditional managers might focus more on operations or the company’s bottom line.
Why You Should Get Into Organizational Management
So, why should you consider a degree in organizational management in the first place? There are a number of great reasons.
Do you like inspiring and training others? Do you possess a strong sense of leadership?
Are you emotionally intelligent and have a keen talent for strategy? Do you enjoy identifying areas for improvement and making those improvements a reality? Then this might be the field for you. All of these are vital components of working as an organizational manager and can present a number of exciting opportunities to train, develop, solve problems, and perform essential work at any organization. But ultimately, going into organizational leadership opens the gates to a wide array of wonderful opportunities that can potentially lead to a long, fruitful career.
How To Become A Professional In The Field
Becoming a professional in the field of organizational management is easy, but takes time and dedication. It all begins with cultivating some of the necessary skills to succeed:
- Delegation
- Leadership
- Problem-solving
- Communication
- Training
- Presentation
- Written and Verbal skills
Then there’s the educational component. It typically begins with pursuing bachelor’s level education in organizational development and management. Then it’s a good idea to get an actual organizational management degree at the master’s level. Combined education and experience, along with additional certifications, are an excellent path to a long career in the field.
Occupational Outlook In The Near Future
Getting an organizational management degree and developing the necessary skills are only part of the equation. It’s always prudent to know what the occupational outlook for any given field is to not only get a sense of its salary range but to also understand whether it’s going to be a viable career option. The good news is that management careers in general have a strong outlook over the next ten years. In fact, business management jobs in generals have one of the strongest outlooks of any field at the moment. Everything from sales management to training and development management falls into this category. All of them have higher salary ranges, well above the $50,000 mark with many of them above $100,000. Organizational managers can fit in well with most of these fields and go on to a successful career.
Careers In Organizational Management
While the outlook and variety of available work are fairly well established at this point, you may be wondering exactly what kind of careers you can actually get into with a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in the field. Here are a few highlights for the bachelor’s degree level:
Managing a small business – organizational leadership degree programs prepare prospective managers for managing the minutiae of running a small business. As the manager, you’ll undoubtedly be responsible for recruiting, training, talent development, and developing operational strategies at the business. Since it’s on a smaller scale, every decision counts.
Becoming a sales manager for a corporation – focusing on a sales target, hiring/recruiting good people, and superb communication skills drive success in sales.
Retail management – requires many of the same skills as sales management, but it’s an entirely different atmosphere as far as running an operation and managing a team is concerned.
Government work – there’s plenty of work at the governmental level for organizational leaders. Effective strategizing, development, and communication are a few of the most essential skills needed to succeed at such jobs.
Getting a master’s degree opens up further career opportunities, such as:
Human Resources Manager – Human resources and training are essential to modern businesses. HR managers help to recruit and developing talent at a high level while simultaneously creating retention/optimization strategies.
Marketing – managers in this area develop effective strategies to improve relationships with customers and manage the teams responsible for marketing, sales, and products.
Consultant – consultants help organizations run their businesses more effectively. As an expert in the field, you can help create and drive effective strategies to help various businesses across a variety of industries thrive.
Payroll managers, Project managers, and Benefits managers are also well-paying careers available at the master’s level. There are many, many more careers available to organizational leaders. Finding the one that suits you best can be a challenge, but eventually leads to a fulfilling, long term career in an exciting field.
