As I said Henry Mintzberg offers managers three areas of competence
or roles central to our responsibilities as a manager that we should also
consider. These he calls: “interpersonal”, “informational” and
“decisional”. Our “interpersonal” responsibilities include being the
figurehead, providing the central liaison point and acting as the leader.
“Informational” responsibilities include monitoring activity, disseminating
information and acting as spokesperson for the group. Finally “decisional”
activities are, being entrepreneurial, handling disruptions, allocating
resources and negotiating on behalf of the organization. These issues will also
be expanded in the various other management lessons.
Management is about all the issues that Mintzberg define an hence the polarities or two head problem as managers today need to be leaders so perhaps the following
explain further …
POLARITIES IN ORGANISATIONAL LIFE (DO WE NEED
TWO HEADS)
Traditional management (in the bad/good old days) used to
concern itself with; supervision, checking, delegating, controlling, inputs and
how to make sure the staff did what they where told. Managers where seen as
fitting along a style line somewhere between laissez faire (lax) and autocratic
(despotic), with us all being encouraged to be somewhere in the middle as
democrats.
Today the
issue is more complex with the newly ‘empowered’ better educated workforce
that most of us today manage, our personal style preference is perhaps less
relevant and we as managers need to become ‘more things’ to a more demanding
workforce. The concept of a manager also fulfilling a leader role is prevalent
in most companies. Some even argue managers are no longer required at all and it
is only leaders that will drive the companies of the future. This is fine in
theory however corporate culture can take a long time to change and for the
majority of us the expectation is that we will be required to fulfil the duel
roles. This creates inner conflict as the ideals of the two disciplines are at
opposite ends of the spectrum. The following list gathered from a wide range of
sources gives some insights into the dilemma facing most managers:
MANAGEMENT
is about: CONTROLLING... Don’t leave our department,
check what they’re up to, define competence requirements and ‘our title and
position give us the authority’ to act within the company procedures and
policies. V.’s LEADERSHIP,
which is about: FREEDOM...Finding ways to encourage
liberalization, creativity and initiative by letting our ‘followers’
participate in a flexible situation where we share authority and perhaps break
the rules
MANAGEMENT
is about: SURVIVING... Dealing with short-term operational needs and processes
whilst strictly controlling costs and watching the budget, and sweating on the
monthly targets. V.’s LEADERSHIP, which is about: GROWTH... Identifying
new and possibly risky ventures that could be the basis for future income (and
perhaps losses) and allowing unplanned changes of direction in and attempt to
capitalize on fleeting market opportunities
MANAGEMENT
is about: MANAGING... Instructing, allocating, delegating, following up,
disciplining, organizing and directing. V.’s LEADERSHIP, which is about:
LEADING...Inspiring, helping, encouraging teamwork,
coaching, supporting, constant feedback, continuous personal development and
goal alignment
MANAGEMENT
is about: ADMINISTRATING... Overseeing activities,
processes & individual tasks, control, supervision and testing against norms
and agreed procedures V.’s LEADERSHIP,
which is about: STRATEGISING... Seeking process improvement, implementing
change, agreeing goals and empowering followers whilst constantly questioning
the value of the plans in light of unfolding events
MANAGEMENT
is about: ORDER & CONSISTENCY... Protecting the existing structure,
systems, traditions and ‘the status quo’, belief that past successes give
insights into the way forward and relying on accumulated ‘facts’ or
‘truths’ V.’s LEADERSHIP, which is about: CREATING CHANGE... Vision, direction, values and destruction of
‘the way we’ve always done it’, or as Jack Welsh (ex GE) and others put it
engaging in ‘continuos creative destruction’
MANAGEMENT is about: COMPETING... Seeking the winning edge, overcoming those in the way
& moving up the ‘ladder’, being your own ‘spin-doctor’ and being
heavily involved in corporate politics. V.’s LEADERSHIP, which is about:
COLLABORATING... Showing love and respect for individuals and seeking win-win
solutions and actively promoting the success of our team members and presenting
them in a good light
MANAGEMENT
is about: DOING THINGS RIGHT... Organising, setting the rules and seeing
rules are followed (compliance), being the inspector, keeping up with the latest
technical advances and controlling information. V.’s LEADERSHIP, which is
about: DOING THE RIGHT THINGS... Developing trust and taking risks
(commitment) to ensure all ‘followers’ meet their full potential and know
what is the most desirable way forward through full disclosure of operational
needs and wants
MANAGEMENT
is about: INPUTS... Amount, type and quality of resources, understanding of
cash flow and cash burn rates, effective plant utilization, staff allocation and
efficient use of raw materials. V.’s LEADERSHIP, which is about: OUTPUTS... The level and volume of satisfied customers we can
create, the market and how it perceives our organization and how we can become
the best in our field and how to provide more value to our customer
MANAGEMENT
is about: MANAGING THINGS. Being operations focused, having high levels of
technical expertise (or at least understanding) and using people as production
inputs or resources. V.’s LEADERSHIP, which is about: LEADING PEOPLE... Our charisma, socialized power, expertise in
human relations, superior communication skills, inspiration & motivation and
seeing human beings as potentials
With
the conflicting nature of these requirements we really need to be a bit of a
two-headed monster if we are to be successful as a manager and the dilemma
continues throughout our working life.
