Relative importance of managerial skills for predicting effectiveness

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the relative importance of four managerial skill dimensions (technical skill, administrative skill, human skill, and citizenship behavior) for predicting managerial effectiveness. In addition, it aims to explore whether the relative importance of these skill dimensions varies as a function of gender or organizational level. Design/methodology/approach – Participants were 733 managers enrolled in a nationally recognized leadership development program. Ratings of managerial skill were obtained from peers using a well‐validated 360‐degree assessment instrument, while manager effectiveness ratings were provided by supervisors. Moderated multiple regression and relative weight analysis were used to test the study's hypotheses. Findings – Using ratings provided by multiple sources, these results show that all four of the managerial skill dimensions were significantly important predictors of manager effectiveness. Human skills were significantly more important than technical skill and citizenship behavior, while administrative skills were most important overall. Gender was not a significant moderator of the skill‐effectiveness relationship, but organizational level was. Practical implications – Individuals tasked with selecting, developing, or placing managers should take all four skill dimensions into account. Moreover, special consideration should be given to administrative skill, and this emphasis should increase for managers higher up in the organizational hierarchy. Originality/value – Although prior research has speculated about the importance of different managerial skills, this study is the first to provide empirical support for this skill typology in predicting actual managerial effectiveness using appropriate statistical analyses for examining the relative importance of these skill dimensions.