Strategies for Successful
Site Management
One of the top
reasons for Web site failure all too often is poor management. Did
you know that just because you're the father or
mother of a great Web idea, it doesn't necessarily
qualify you as the best manager of that idea? Sure,
sometimes it can, but often it doesn´t. Consider the following:
The person who
comes up with a great new Internet concept is often
blinded by their devotion to their idea. They can
begin to act like elephants trying to turn on a dime. The
Internet changes rapidly. If you are too locked into
one idea, you may not adjust to the market fast
enough. If you hang on too long, you may be the
proverbial captain who goes down with the ship. A
good manager who holds no emotional investment in the
idea may be able to see more clearly.
The opposite can
also be true. Many visionary people jump from one
idea to the next. They may not stay focused long
enough to guide a project to completion. I've seen
this type of manager continually change projects
mid-stream until, hundreds of thousands of dollars
later, they still have nothing substantial. This
type of people needs a solid vision to guide the
project through to completion.
People who have big
ideas often have big egos. They want to control
every piece of the project. They may be unwilling to
delegate. By the way, delegating is more than
just getting other people to do the work you don't
want to do--it's delegating decision power as well.
For example, if a manager lacks technical expertise
s/he shouldn't try to make the technical decisions.
Sure, s/he might like to be involved in the big
decisions, but they should surround themselves with
good technical people and then trust their input and
decisions.
A good site manager
also needs to know how to budget and appropriate
funds. An extremely common mistake is to go
over-budget on site development and
programming and then have nothing left for marketing
and promoting the site. The greatest site in the
world is worth little if no one knows about it. A
wise manager will put a smart, honest financial
expert in charge of the purse strings.
In summary, a good
Web site manager would have the following
characteristics:
- They can stay
focused, yet are willing to make necessary
modifications to plans when the market
demands.
- They can locate
and hire good people to complete the project.
- They can delegate
tasks and decision-making power to the capable
people they have hired.
- They know how to
budget and appropriate funds so that there is
enough left for marketing and promotion.
I might add one more
characteristic of a good manager: s/he praises his/her people. They let them know
when they've done a good job. But, there's more to
just praising people. When you trust them to do their
jobs and are willing to delegate appropriate
decision-making power, you show people that you truly
value them and their work. Actions speak
louder than words.
