Is it Better to Lead or Manage?

According to a 2014 study by the Center for Creative Leadership, close to 40 percent of new chief executives are not successful within their first 18 months on the job, and most fail to live up to the expectations established by company. This, as suggested by Hewerston (2014), is likely because the expected behaviors and actions related to the leadership role have not been clearly defined. This is unfortunate as I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that people need to understand the contextual expectations of an organization if they are to effectively lead and manage under varying conditions. But what does it mean to lead and manage? And is one better than the other?

The term leadership is frequently used, but the definition is often imprecise. Among other things, it’s been described as a trait, ability, skill, and relationship reflected through “styles” of leadership like Transformational, Democratic, Authoritarian, and Taissez-faire, (Northouse, 2015). This makes leadership development challenging given there is no singular set of competencies applicable across situations. Researcher and author, Dr. Peter Northouse (2007), suggests leadership is “a process whereby an individual influences a group of individuals to achieve a common goal.” He has found upwards of 70 different classification systems of leadership, many which have evolved over the last few decades. 

But regardless of the topography or “style” of leadership, the common thought is that the function of leadership is to influence people (well, influence behavior from my perspective) towards a common goal. Older thoughts regarding leadership held that power comes from position on the org chart, leaders should “command and control”, and the measure of the leader can be found in the results. In contrast, more modern and humanitarian views on leadership rooted in the science of human behavior hold that the org chart is just a management tool, not a leadership locator, power comes from the people, and the measure of the leader is better found in the behavior of the followers as results can be obtained through a variety of unethical behaviors (Daniels & Daniels, 2007). That is, getting people to do something more, less or, differently. Since behavior is countable, measuring leadership based on it provides an opportunity to collect cold hard data related to leadership (as opposed to judgement). Dr. Aubrey Daniels, the “father” of Organizational Behavior Management, suggests the following as metrics:

Mass – Amount of followers responding to the leader

Velocity – Amount of time it takes for followers to respond

Direction – Number of followers moving toward the goal

Vision – Number of followers maintaining a clear focus on vision over time

Values – Number of followers performing ethically

Persistence – Number of followers putting forth continuous effort towards goals

Teamwork – Frequency of cooperation among followers

Trust – Number of followers willing to admit mistakes

Respect – Number of followers reinforcing rather than punishing

If you notice, this approach to measuring leadership makes everything empirical as it is countable in terms of frequency or duration. This can be an extremely powerful tool for becoming an objective observer of the impact of your own leadership. As Dr. Daniel’s reminds us, “The intentional search for the impact of your actions set you apart from those who try to replicate the actions of other leaders” (2007).

There are also some folks who confuse leadership with management, think one is better than the other, or think they are one in the same. But there is a difference. And like the quarterback and the wide-receiver, leadership and management are complimentary and typically both required for the regular pursuit and accomplishment of short and long term goals. I like researcher Dr. Scott Geller discrimination between the two where he says, “Simply put, managers hold people accountable, whereas leaders inspire people to feel responsible” (Geller, 2003). 

You see, effective leaders focus on strengthening relationships, facilitating self-accountability, and using feedback to make progress toward goal attainment a source of value and reinforcement (Daniels, 2000).  And effective managers facilitate order, consistency, and accountability using performance feedback to let people know where they stand in relation to goals, and what should be done to move closer to them (Balacazar, Hopkins, & Suarez, 1986). 

While not a precise description of leadership and management behavior, Kotter (1990) differentiates between the two through these basic functions:

Many people get caught up on the title of leader or manager. But people can be leaders or managers from any place within the organization. Regardless of their position or status, everyone in almost any situation has an opportunity to influence and lead others in a way that makes a positive difference. Sometimes leaders must manage, and at other times, managers must lead. Where leaders outline a path and get people to collectively move in the right direction, managers coordinate and ensure folks stay on course. In fact, Daniels & Daniels (2007) suggest that the durability of the leader’s vision is dependent on the quality of management, and therefore, needs to be involved in management as much as necessary to ensure systems and processes are in place. At times this may require “managing the managers.” There are some critical aspects to both leadership and management rooted in the science of human behavior that are outlined well in this brief video by Brett DiNovi.

Regardless of whether you are in a leadership or management position, and despite whatever leadership or management approach you may have read about or subscribe to, the science of human behavior tells us that less focus must be placed on telling people what to do, and more placed on the consequences that occur as a result of performance (Komaki, 1998). Specifically, consequences that are positively reinforcing. If you truly wish to effectively and efficiently support the achievement of desired outcomes across contexts, you must learn to martial the power of positive reinforcement. I’ll talk more about positive reinforcement in an upcoming article as it is widely misunderstood, yet fundamental to all behavioral and performance improvement. But for the purpose of this article, just remember...whether you are a parent, teacher, coach, manager, leader, or in variety of other roles, sometimes you must lead, and at other times you must manage.

References

Balacazar, F., Hopkins, B. L., & Suarez, Y. (1986). A critical objective review of performance feedback. Journal of Organizational Behavior Management, 18, 33-59.

Daniels, A. C. (2000). Bringing out the best in people: How to apply the astonishing power of positive reinforcement (2nd ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.

Daniels, A., & Daniels, J. (2007). Measure of a leader: The legendary leadership formula for producing exceptional performers and outstanding results. NY, New York: McGraw-Hill.

E. Scott Geller (2003) Leadership to Overcome Resistance to Change, Journal of Organizational Behavior Management, 22:3, 29-49, DOI: 10.1300/J075v22n03_04

Komaki, J. L. (1998). Leadership from an operant perspective. London, England: Routledge

Hewertson, R., (2014). Lead like it matters...because it does: Practical leadership tools to inspire and engage your people and create great results. NY: New York: McGraw-Hill

Northouse, P., (2007). Leadership theory and practice. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, Inc

BIO

An expert in human performance, coaching, and organizational leadership, Dr. Paul "Paulie" Gavoni has worked in education and human services for 20 years where he served in a variety of positions including COO, Director of School Improvement, Leadership Director, Professor, Assistant Principal, School Turnaround Manager, Clinical Coordinator, Therapist, and Behavior Analyst. Beyond his direct work with students in poverty and those suffering from behavioral and mental health issues, Dr. Gavoni specializes in providing administrative teams, teachers, and staff with training, coaching, and consultation in analyzing and developing behavior and performance management systems to positively impact key performance indicators. As a behavior scientist, Dr. Gavoni is passionate about applying organizational behavior management (OBM) strategies to establish positive environments that engage and bring out the best in professionals, so they can bring out the best in the children and adults they serve. 

Dr. Gavoni is co-author of Quick Wins! Accelerating School Transformation through Science, Engagement, and Leadership  and the best seller Deliberate Coaching: A Toolbox for Accelerating Teacher Performance. In addition, he is published in academic journals on topics related to school improvement and sports, and has published three online courses dedicated to school leadership preparation, an area he remains deeply passionate about. Click here to listen to hear more about Dr. Gavoni’s work in schools.

Beyond his work in education and human services, Dr. Gavoni is also a highly sought out and respected coach in combat sports. In 1992, he began boxing in South Florida and went on to win a Florida Golden Gloves Heavyweight Title in 1998. Since then, Coach “Paulie Gloves,” as he is known in the Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) community, has trained many champions and UFC vets using technologies rooted in the behavioral sciences. Coach Paulie has been a featured coach in the books Beast: Blood, Struggle, and Dreams a the Heart of Mixed Martial Arts, A Fighter’s Way, and the article Ring to Cage: How four former boxers help mold MMA’s finest. 

He is also an author who has written for a variety of online magazines such as Scifighting, Last Word on Sports, and Bloody Elbow where his Fight Science series continues to bring behavior science to MMA. Co-founder of MMA Science, his current project involves the development of the first International MMA Belt Ranking System, a ground breaking process bringing tradition, organization, and behavior science to mixed martial arts.