Issue 8 August 20, 2003
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In this Issue:
“We have an abundance
of managers and not enough leaders.”
I have heard words to this effect from numerous companies and
organizations and applying to a variety of situations. Outwardly this statement seems to imply
that managers are not leaders, and unfortunately this is true all too
often. But I am sure that we all
know managers who are in fact very good leaders. The current organization assumption is that when someone is
assigned to the role of manager he or she will naturally assume the role of
leadership of the group they are assigned to manage. Such rash assumptions often lead to serious problems between
management and employees.
Let’s looks
at some of the differences between management and leadership:
Management
tends to be concerned largely with “things” such as schedules, budgets,
statistics and details. Managers
tend to be interested in efficiency and effectiveness. The fundamental management question is
“Are we doing things right?” The
basic skills and knowledge necessary for management can be learned in business
school, company sponsored course or simply through on the job learning.
Leadership
tends to be concerned largely with “people” and people issues such as
communication. Leaders tend to be
concerned with direction and purpose.
The fundamental leadership question is “Are we doing the right
things?” The basic skills and
abilities necessary for effective leadership tend to be related to behavior,
and although these skills and abilities can be learned most leaders learn them
by practicing them rather than studying them.
It should be
obvious that both Leadership and Management are critically important to any
organization, but under different circumstances and for different reasons. The analogy I like is that of a wagon
train of the 1850’s heading west.
At the beginning of the journey the wagon master provided the sense of
the purpose and direction that the travelers needed to begin this arduous
journey. He established
intermediate goals for time and distance throughout the journey. As the journey progress he provided the
encouragement needed to overcome obstacles, he also had scouts keep an eyes on
the trail ahead to warn of danger or take advantage of opportunities. These are all examples of the leadership
role. On the management side the
wagon master also made sure that all travelers kept up with the wagon trail, no
stragglers! He monitored daily
progress toward their time and distance goals. He also monitored the use of
food and water and arranged for re-supply. He made arrangement for security and settled disputes among
the travelers. The wagon master of
old had to be both and effective leader and manager.
Organizations
of today are considerably more complex than the wagon train of that era. But the leadership and management
issues are much the same.
Leadership is needed in any organization to provide direction and a
sense of purpose. Management is
required to assure the effective and efficient execution of all the elements
required to achieve the stated purpose.
Both management and leadership skills are required for virtually all
jobs, but in varying degrees, and under different circumstances. Consider the following generalities
concerning leadership and management:
q
Generally, higher levels of positions in an organization require a greater
leadership focus
q
Generally, jobs requiring more human interaction (e.g. marketing, sales)
require a greater leadership focus
q
Generally, jobs requiring more involvement with tasks and details
require a greater management focus
q
Generally, Leadership is more important in times of change such as
company start up, new product introductions, or ownership change.
q
Generally, Management is
more important when it is necessary to maintain stability.
Effective
leadership and management are both critically important to success, and we all
possess the capabilities for both, whether within organizations or in our
personal lives. The key to
effective management and leadership is to understand where each concept is
required and learn to apply it effectively.
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