MANAGEMENT, Distinct From Leadership

??

MANAGEMENT OR LEADERSHIP

Management and leadership are often seen as one-and-the-same due to some functional overlap, but this can dilute the specific contributions each discipline offers. Unlike other business functions with an expectation for specific skills, I often observe management roles being granted without consideration of associated skills, ability, or follow-on training.

?As a result, many transitions into management rely on inexperienced “gut” senses or erratic “guessing”. The result is management malpractice commonly manifested in difficult work environments, high turnover, attendance and timeliness issues, lousy customer service, slow work pace, cutting policy corners, poor quality, waste, and more.

?This needlessly puts businesses in jeopardy, as good management could easily remedy what poor management creates.

?

?SIMILARITIES AND DIFFERENCES

?Businesses are more likely to succeed, the more leadership and management each perform their professional skills within their distinct disciplines.

?As Peter Drucker, the renowned management consultant, famously stated, “Leadership is doing the right things, and Management is doing things right.”? Let’s explore this further.

?While management is different from leadership, it draws upon leadership attributes regularly.? Before we begin, there are at least two constants among them.?

1.???? Core Imperatives: The first is shared integrity, ethics, discipline, and drive from which all else is anchored.? Leadership instills these and management mirrors them for continuity and organizational trust.? ??

2.???? Emotional Skills: A universal expectation from all leaders and managers is to practice refined personnel engagement.? These are skills and the awareness that meet workplace human physical, intellectual, and emotional needs to the extent that it releases the full potential of employees for the benefit of the business.

?With these constants in place, we see an expectation for leadership as a fixed anchor.? However, we need management to be more dynamic.? We expect management to show continuity and predictability, but at the same time adjust to accomplish what the vision and strategy direct within the changing competitive landscape.

?In the associated graphics, the two colors represent different circumstances that require varying management emphasis.? For example, one may be more focused on project issues and the other more focused on people.? Consider what may cause some of these shifts in focus:

·?????? Timing: The closer to the inception and planning of a project, at project decision points, etc. the more leadership is required.? Management emphasis then dominates during the execution phases of an activity.

·?????? People: With new hires, less trained personnel, personnel issues, new policies being rolled out, etc., then the more detailed involvement or management is required.

·?????? Scope: The more granular, narrow, or task oriented a business role is, the more management emphasis may be required.? The reach, cost, and impact of the scope will also influence the balance between leadership and management.

·?????? Technical: Like Scope, the more skill based and specific the role, the more detail and management focus may be needed.

·?????? More: Much more could be listed, such as new material sourcing, new culture initiatives, new customers, and many more events that may require a shift of approach across the spectrum of leadership and management behavior.

?Because leadership and management are distinct, I recommend that leaders and managers recognize, at least to themselves, when they are acting more as leaders or more as managers.? This practice reinforces and keeps active within them the distinct professionalism, skills, and behaviors of each, rather than blending them.? In the long run that is not helpful and returns us to the one-and-the-same starting point.? This separation may be known to them, and seamless to others.?

?You can point out this distinction on the spectrum of leadership and management with direct reports or others you are mentoring.? This is instructive in their development and creating a unified understanding of what is leadership and what is management throughout the business.

?For instance, as a manager while performing a GEMBA Walk to assess operations, safety, policy implementation, personnel behavior, and workforce tone, you may choose to act more in a leadership demeanor.? Meaning, being upbeat and uplifting giving a positive message and confidence that reassures employees all is well.? You recognize this is not the time to critique and correct operations or employees.

?Yet, later in a weekly meeting with managers, you then recite the details of your GEMBA Walk and gain commitments to improve areas that have fallen short.? It is your integrity, ethics, discipline, and drive that ensures direct-report managers prevent the business from slipping from operating as it must.

?

?MANAGEMENT SPECIFICS

?Leadership has been addressed elsewhere, so it will not be of primary focus here.? It is often portrayed as being forward and outward focused, or working-on-the-business, rather than working-in-the-business.? I agree, and break those definitions into five specific areas of leadership discussed in another article. Management supports the initiatives and directions of leadership, so they are also engaged with the five areas of leadership, but more with an inward and executional focus to realize the strategy and vision of leadership, such as:

1.???? Core Imperatives: The leader sets the standard of integrity, ethics, discipline, and drive.? From which the vision and supportive strategy emerge.? Management must emulate and be congruent with these core imperatives.

2.???? Outward: Management and functional specialists support and carry out the leader’s outward intent.

3.???? Inward Skills: From the vision, strategy, funding allocation, headcount, external contacts and more, management is left to interpret what actions are needed.? Management’s focus here is on planning, budgeting, resourcing, hiring, etc. to perform the tasks and details of the strategy to achieve the vision.

4.???? Physical Skills: A further subset of Outward and Inward responsibilities is a clarifying focus on the physical considerations of facility, equipment, human needs and safety, materials, and other support needs to deliver on what has been defined and allocated.

1. Emotional Skills: These are the same refined universal skills established and exemplified by the leader.? These skills set the conditions to draw out the greatest will, skill, and thrill or joy for the work and purpose of the business that creates a culture of high performance and unbeatable competitive advantage.

?Leadership and management prevail throughout the organization at all levels.? The best management actively trains and acknowledges the growth of management and leadership throughout the organization, even within individuals.?

?

?CONCLUSION

?The distinction between leadership and management is often overlooked, yet it is crucial to business success. Leadership sets the standards and provides the guiding vision and strategy, with management ensuring its execution and delivery. When businesses recognize the importance of each discipline and develop their managers to be empowered applying both leadership and management principles effectively, they create a culture of adaptability, accountability, and high performance.

?A business that develops strong leaders and capable managers will be equipped to minimize and overcome challenges and seize opportunities in today’s dynamic environment. A successful business starts first with well-established leadership and management.