Management perceptions of competencies essential for middle managers

Abstract

The aim of the study was to establish whether managers at different levels of the organisational hierarchy perceive different managerial competencies as important for middle managers, and whether there were differences between the perceptions of males and females. The participants consisted of 444 senior, middle and first-line managers from a parastatal organisation in Botswana. They completed a questionnaire that assessed their opinions on the importance of six broad competencies for middle managers. It was found that senior managers rated interpersonal competence as more important than middle managers, whereas first-line managers rated operational competence as more important than middle managers. Females perceived analytical and operational competencies as more important than males, whereas males perceived interpersonal competencies as more important than females.

Opsomming
Die doel van die studie was om vas te stel of bestuurders op verskillende vlakke van die organisatoriese leer verskillende bestuursbevoegdhede belangrik ag vir middelvlakbestuur en of die persepsies van vroue van dié van mans verskil. Die deelnemers was 444 senior, middel- en eerstevlakbestuurders van ’n semi-staatsorganisasie in Botswana. Die bestuurders het ’n vraelys voltooi waarin hulle hul menings oor die belangrikheid van ses breë bevoegdhede vir middelvlakbestuurders moes aandui. Daar is bevind dat senior bestuurders meer klem op interpersoonlike bevoegdheid as middelbestuurders plaas. Daarteenoor het eerstelyntoesighourers operasionele bevoegdheid as belangriker geag as middelbestuurders. Vroue het analitiese en operasionele bevoegdhede as belangriker beskou as mans en mans het interpersoonlike bevoegdhede as belangriker beskou as vroue.