TO LEAD OR TO MANAGE WHAT IS THE QUESTION?

To all my future aspiring people manager colleagues, I always ask the question what is their motivation to be a people manager and do they really understand what it entails? In psychological aspects, being a people manager brings the desirable result of promotion and that brings more money and benefit; and who will say no to that? right?

What I hear very often from aspiring professionals is the desire of becoming a people manager for the extrinsic motivation primarily which in the end is short lived.

In 2010, Judge et al. published a meta-analysis of 86 studies related to the relationship between pay and job satisfaction. Results suggest that pay level is only marginally related to satisfaction." In their discussion, these researchers explain adaptation level theory, a phenomenon in which "judgements of experience are relative to a reference point that shifts with experience and current background stimuli." What we consider a fair level of pay at one point, such as during the interview process, may be different than what we consider fair after we have received that amount for an extended time. They also point out that "…as soon as an individual receives an increase in pay, it may be quickly psychologically ‘spent' and thereby loses its satisfying value.

So; after the extrinsic motivation is spent and gone what do you have? This discussion of intrinsic motivation of being a people manager happens on many platforms and many books have been written on it but practically on field how much gets implemented is the difference that gets created between a futuristic and proactive company and laggards.

When companies do succession management or identify talents and future leaders how well do they prepare them to understand what it means to be a manager or leader. Do they know what value this position will bring to them? What challenges they will have and do they have self-awareness on where they are now on their personal leadership? Do companies gauge their intrinsic motivation for becoming a manager? Do organizations develop them to learn about what it is to be a manager before the company makes them manager? Most of the companies do many manager onboarding after an employee becomes managers but before an employee apply for a managerial position or is in line for a promotion into a managerial position; what can be done to ensure they have awareness for the job?

One of the first things I always tell my newly appointed managers is to not take pressure to be perfect manager or leader from day one. It needs a whole annual process cycle to only understand people processes. They need to be aware that they are in D1 of the situational leadership model II (by Ken Blanchard for development level) with high commitment and low competence as they have stepped in a position they never have done before. If they understand this it is easy for them to ask for help from their manager, peers or other experienced colleagues.

Being a manager is never an easy job. You need to not only take care of your own task but big part of your job is to ensure your team is able to do their task for company’s growth. So your job becomes multiple of your team plus your own operational task other than people management. So to go on the journey of being a leader from a people manager organisations need to ensure that the first step is to learn how to manage people. Then manager can use the combination of learned skills and abstractions of character to be a leader.

Matthew Richter in his article “How To Create A Leadership Vision Driven By Intrinsic Motivation” writes that:

“Leaders have passion, they have a vision that they communicate to their followers and they have a values system that illustrates how to get to that vision. Positive leadership enjoins all three attributes fluidly into a cohesive tapestry. Passion is the artistry, vision the template, and values are the thread that binds it all together.”

Author: Shama Hasan - Keen seeker of life & organisational excellence