The senior management of an organisation was asked to describe as to how they perceived their role if the organisation were to be a ship. Most of the people related to the role of a captain in a ship..The wise old CEO believed his role to be of Ship Designer - his job was to design it perfectly and empower the people thereafter to make the journey perfect. This subtlety in perception can make all the difference in the world !
'What is understood is more important than what is said' is the basic premise of this article. The objective of this article is to present the difference between the different styles of management FROM the perspective of person at the bottom of the corporate ladder rung. With my limited corporate experience I am not in a position to comment on any management styles or techniques, but I can certainly express the effects of these styles for the juniors in an organisation.
Reality or biased perception ?
Contrary to what most of us would like to believe, opinions are mostly preconceived notions and often tend to be an extension of the mental bias. Take for example bringing in a new plush sofa set into a CEO's cabin - the junior people perceive it as extravagance whereas it is a status symbol for others....the debate would be endless but the real bone of contention is seldom the article itself..It is the manner in which the whole thing was dealt with..In absence of any explicit communication, perceptions tend to be seen as reality and this unanticipated ruffling has widespread implications especially at the junior level...Speaking from an organisation's perspective - irrationally held beliefs are far more dangerous than rationally held lies...In the longer run, building up of such misconceptions is far more harmful for the organisation rather than the individuals.
Locking the devil or slaying the dragon ?
When faced with problem or a unrealistic deadline, it is very tempting to mistake the symptoms for the diseases itself. A deadline manager would stop nothing short of pulling the whole of intestine from the mouth to accomplish his deadline. On the other hand, a mentor would make this as a platform for the juniors to rise to the occasion by racking their brains and coming up with ingenious solutions. No ready-made syrups are forced down the throat thereby enabling them to grow both professionally and personally.
Escapism Vs Problem Solving ?
It is unpractical to expect the leaders to be omniscient and give a three point solutions to all the problems. However that does not mean that they are absolved from the responsibilities in situations with which they are not well versed with. The escapisms usually bear distinctive tone and are on the lines of ' Get that closed today..It is unacceptable that it has not been completed till now' or ' Confirm to me once it is done'..Whereas a mentor would appraise the situation ,if required learn from the team members and pool his expertise in arriving at the solution. 'Problem solving' approach isn't just a fancy phrase on a resume for them !
Proactive culture
Branding the proactive people as 'Smart Alec' trying to outdo others is the surest way to kill creativity. Discipline adherence is just a veil used by such Iron fists. Encouraging proactiveness is the forte of mentors - they are the ones who knows that there are many unexplored horizons and accomplishing such goals is much bigger than themselves. 'A lot more good can be done if one didn't care as to how gets the credit'.
Breeding future managers
Larry Bossidy (Chairman of Honeywell Intl and a former Senior GE executive) writes in his book 'Execution: The Discipline of Getting Things Done' that the biggest success of Jack Welch (the legendary GE CEO) is not the stellar financial performance of GE over the years. It is the numerous leaders Jack built in GE, who went on to become some of the most successful CEOs in various organisations including Larry himself. This is what sets apart Mentors from the monotonous Managers or leaders !! You can buy obedience but not respect.
The least I could do for my mentors is to dedicate this article to them. I shall always remain indebted for their valuable lessons.
