Management is Getting a Bum Rap!

Attention all personnel; this is Leslie LEADER speaking. Be on the lookout for a mid-level professional, a little over 5 foot, 9 inches (1.75 meters) tall with a slight to medium build. Suspect is late-thirties to early-forties in age with short dark hair. We have confirmed reports that the suspect is known to be a short-term, day-to-day thinker, who organizes people and lays down expectations. The suspect is risk-averse, plans actions and activities in great detail, and seeks consistency and stability. Unconfirmed reports have the suspect last seen conducting a team meeting in our corporate headquarters. The suspect’s name is Morgan MANAGER.?I repeat, the suspect’s name is Morgan?MANAGER. If spotted, approach with extreme caution and call for back-up!?The suspect is known to be tough-minded and armed with a Gantt chart.?This is Leslie LEADER; over and out.”

While my introduction may be?a bit comical, many who consider themselves good managers are feeling that they are under attack.?There is much discussion in today’s business literature, corporate conference rooms, and even here on LinkedIn, on the turpitude?of “management" and the virtues of “leadership”. Many of my posts, in fact, have espoused the importance?of leadership and leadership skills. However, in writing about leadership, I have never derided good?management skills nor the managers who possess them.?I have recently decided not having scoffed management is not enough. The time has come to actively?champion the benefits of good management skills. I do so with this post.

Look at almost any written or tabular comparison of leadership versus management and you will see that management is routinely vilified with descriptions such as commanding, instilling fear, punishing, controlling, directing, and authoritarian. Leadership, on the other hand is often glorified and associated with empowering, instilling respect, rewarding, delegating, and being a visionary. The stark differences between how managers are portrayed and how leaders are represented is perfectly captured in the following table[1]. Note that "management" characteristics are shown in “raging” red while "leadership" attributes are highlighted in “gleeful” green.

The pertinent question is why has “management” become such a dirty word in leadership circles??It is as though everyone wants to lead nowadays and no one wants to manage. But, a business full of (only) leaders is analogous to having too many cooks in the kitchen; everyone thinks they know what to do, everyone is doing something, but no one knows what anyone else is doing, or if anyone is doing anything productive. I have seen this scenario in action and tell the story in my post,?Master These 7 Skills and You Will be Well-Prepared to Lead Change. That was a business were everyone from Sales, to Operations, to the Regions was trying to lead.?In reality, no one was leading. It was a recipe for disaster and disaster struck in the form of insolvency. (Note: read the post to find out how my team and I resurrected this business).?

As we explore why management has taken on the role of antagonist to leadership’s protagonist, let us first acknowledge that leadership and management are indeed different. Ultimately, both practices seek the same outcome – to accomplish something. However, they use different means to get there. One approach is no more or less valid than the other; they are just different with each being effective and useful in different situations.

Understanding Leadership VERSUS Management

Leadership tends to utilize UNBOUNDED techniques and principles such as creating an aspirational vision, empowering ownership and decision making, evoking passion in individuals and establishing constant learning environments to influence and encourage people to act productively.?These “feel good” practices appeal to the “heart and soul” and imply endless possibilities.

Management, on the other hand, is all about execution.?It uses BOUNDED elements such as timelines, budgets, resources, structure and planning to persuade and motivate people to get things done. These components target the “pragmatic” mind and focus on realities of today rather than the (endless) possibilities of tomorrow.

Looking at these two basic definitions, it is no wonder everyone wants to lead.?Who among us would choose to be grounded in the constraints and limitations of today’s existence when we could be exploring the vast, blue sky and unknowns of tomorrow? Personally speaking, sign me up for “blue sky”! However, be careful here;?"blue sky” alone will not get you the stellar results you desire. Recall point number 5 from my post?10 Illusions of Leadership:?Strategy absent of tactical execution is simply a collection of ideas.?Bear in mind, leadership without management tends to result in an organization in disarray. A disorganized entity?will be an ineffective one. For maximum effectiveness, you also need proficiency in the techniques associated with “earth grounded” management.

The Importance of Leadership AND Management

If you are in a leadership role or aspire to soon be in one, it is awe-inspiring to be able to craft and cast a compelling vision. It is wonderful to have in your skill set the ability to excite people using words alone as you communicate your vision. It is great to be skillful at drafting a beautiful, multi-dimensional strategy. But, if you cannot secure and manage the right resources (i.e. human, system, and/or capital), create and optimize the right structure, or determine, measure and track the right success metrics to deliver the objectives within the required timeline, you will likely fail as a leader. As evidence, I once had a CEO who was ousted essentially because he failed at the management part of his job. I believe he laid out the right plan for the company, but he failed to effectively manage the execution of the plan. Good management skills are critical for effective leadership.??

Management is often associated with all things that are not associated with leadership. The truth is, as a manager, your area of responsibility will suffer and you will fail if you are oblivious to basic leadership skills and attributes.?For instance, suppose you are superb at managing system resources, capital resources and timelines. Let’s surmise you are skillful at measuring and tracking the right success metrics. In doing so, however, your personality is selfish, your style is underwhelming, and your approach is demotivating. You are scant with praise and stingy with rewards. You can manage a project, but you cannot manage people. Under this scenario, unless you are a one-person show (meaning what you are managing is only dependent on you and no one else) you will likely fail as a manager. Basic leadership skills are critical for effective management.

Be wary of over-valuing leadership skills while simultaneously under-valuing management skills.?If you do, you may?be perceived as more idealistic and/or quixotic than effective. You may be viewed as dynamic, innovative and inspiring, but you could also be seen as unstructured, haphazard, and chaotic. On the contrary, if you are overly leveraged on management competencies such as?structure, planning and systems, but light on leadership skills leading to a stagnant, unimaginative, insipid approach, your style could be perceived?as more administrative, procedural, and/or bureaucratic than effective.?To be most effective, you should strive for a healthy balance between leadership skills and management techniques.

Conclusion

Leadership guru?Warren Bennis (1925-2014) said, "Managers are people who do things right and leaders are people who do the right thing. Both roles are crucial, and they differ profoundly"[2]. "The manager asks how and when; the leaders asks what and why"[3].?I have come to learn over the course of my career that leadership and management are truly interconnected and exquisitely complementary.?In my opinion, for maximum effectiveness, the inspirational, long-term focused, strategic, direction-setting leader needs to be proficient at improving productivity, capable of managing key projects, experienced at nurturing an organization and an expert at recognizing and developing talent.?If not, he or she?will need to surround themself?with managers who possess these skills.?The reverse is true as well; the best managers will need to hone their leadership skills to get the most from their team.?My upcoming?post, "Applying the Principles of Leadership to be a Better Manager" will focus on this topic.

Finally, when comparing leadership and management, leadership sounds cool; management sounds boring.?It is fine to strive for “blue sky” leadership.?Just know that you will achieve maximum effectiveness if you are also firmly "grounded" in management principles.?Make sure you have both skills in your personal toolbox.

Thank you for reading my article. Management is Getting a Bum Rap!?is the 22nd?article from Dr. Michael Edwards. If you enjoyed it, please subscribe to my Newsletter,?Leadership Explained,?to get notified when I publish a new article. Please 'share' this article with your network, click 'like', and/or leave a comment.?Click 'Follow' if you wish to follow me on LinkedIn. Have a look at my other Leadership Explained articles by clicking here.

References

1. The Alternative Board, October, 2014. [Article]. Leadership vs. Management: What's the difference??Retrieved from https://www.thealternativeboard.com/leadership-vs-management-whats-difference/.
2. Bennis, Warren and Nanus, Burt (1985).?Leaders: The Strategies for Taking Charge. Harper and Row. p. 21
3. Bennis, Warren (2009).?On Becoming a Leader (Twentieth Anniversary Edition). Basic Books: New York. p. 42.