Managers and Their Background

chapter one

and their background

,1",'Tn~~~t~'~~~h~~;~~~;~~~~,;~':/;', , (forrull detailS:see the liStingat the',:, "::' ';'; : ;si~ri'Oft~i;:b9bk),; , ',':' ':!"

When you have worked through this chapter you will be able to:

o Identify key management processes

o Understand how people become managers

G Identify the limitations of specialist career structures

$ Understand the nature and causes of conflict between specialist and managerial work

c. Identify where you are or are likely to be on the managerial escalator

41 Developa strategy for getting the right balance between specialist and managerial work, both for yourself andothers

Introduction

This chapter sets the theme for the whole book, First, the nature of management isexamined, and then the way in which people become managers, People usually have anescalator-type progression into management. They are likely to have to combine _specialist with managerial responsibilities for much of their career and therefore

\:-.\become managei'ia(hybrids, Untortunately, people may ~~'t'h-ei~- ~a~ge~i~l;);:v-> responsibilities in favour of specialist activity. If this happens, their personal priorities

(}.J conflict with organisational priorities, There are four main reasons why such conflictcan arise, These are because of lack of attention to:

13 job definition,I? managerial selection,

2 The skills of management

$ training and development,til effective monitoring.

To be effective, managers need to be prepared to meet organisational rather thanpersonal priorities. If they concentrate on doing specialist work, they are likely to findtheir career prospects severely limited because of the difficulty that organisations havein providing career structures only involving specialist work. Whilst much of thematerial used to illustrate this point is British, the problem of converting specialists intobeing managers of other specialists is an international phenomenon.. Other issues covered are the concept of managerial competencies and the remedial

strategies for improving the quality of management. The remedial strategies are linkedto dealing with the four basic causes of poor management already identified. The firstissue to be developed is the actual nature of management.

C"'Yh'e'-nat~'re"0 (m an'agem'e'nt"'-'..--.-.,- -.. ..._.. ..'_'."..-_ __ - -,- " '.'.. _, ..,.-._.'" '_" .._-, "--,"" ,.._ .. -, _ ,--_ .. - - ..__ ".-.- _ ,.... . ..., .

THE MANAGERIAL CYCLE

Management has been defined by Mary Parker Follett as}he art of getting things done~through people' (Graham 1988).

The elements involved in the process of management were identified by Henri Fayolas 'to forecast and plan, to organise, to command, to co-ordinate and to control' (Gray1988).

Synthesising Fayols view with later writers, one can identify the basic elements in.V terms of the managerial cycle as shown in Figure 1.1.

FIGURE 1.1 The managerialcycle

FeedbackaM\' ). . Resource

Motivation organisation

~ communication~

Identification~OfObjeCliVes

Remedialaction

(Targetsetting

Ma

Ho.

RELATIC

Managers and their background 3

Some writers see the managerial cycle as a simplistic model with too rational a view ofthe manager .. Mintzberg's stud of how managers actually operate challenged theconcept of the tota y rational manager. He observed~es atwork and also reviewed the results of studies of managers at generally lower levels inother 'Western countries, The overall pattern of managerial work appeared to him to bea bectic and fragmented one with little 00?0rtunity for reflective thought. Mintzberg- ~ -----_._----,-----also found decision-making was often abrut, intuitive and incremental rather ,thanstrategic. ~twasortenlnfiUei1cedbys~~io~;:;'a_tj9!Lincluding .internal and externalgossip (Mintzberg 1989).~other writer, Watson, also has spent time observing managers at work (1994). His-observations of UK managers in the electronics industry led him to conclude thatindividuals view the process of management as being interrelated with their identity,values, status, development, self-esteem and material rewards. He also saw thesemanagers' daily activities as particularly concerned with

feeling ones way ill confusing circumstances, struggling to make sense of ambiguousmessages, reading signals, looking around, listening all the time, coping with co}~flictsand struggling to achieve tasks thro1!gh establishing and maintaining a network ofrelationships.

IIY

Watson 1994: 8

Another recent view of the role and skills of the manager was provided in a study ofmanagement in local government in the UK. There is a general relevance in theirobservation:I

~'

J

Management is best defined not as a limited number of'top' or 'leading' positions, butas a set of competencies, attitudes, and qualities bioadiy distributed throughout theorganisation. Management skills are not the propert), of the few. Effectil'e localauthorities will recognise that man)' jobs which have not conventionally borne the tag'manager' rely Hone the less all that bundle of actions - taking charg, securing anoutcome, controlling affairs - which amounts to 'managing'.

Local Government Ivtanogemenc Board 1993: 8

How people become managers

RELATIONSHIP WITH ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE

The structure of organisations is usually such that most employees are engaged in aspecialised activity. The number of general jobs involving the co-ordination of the workof a number of different specialist departments, for example, tends to be very limited,

~"


The entry into organisations is usually into specialised activity. People may be engagedat a 10'wIyleveCmaspe~ialis~d deparTineni.- jUt-ernati~;d),;they may have advanced._-specialist skills that they have acquired either by experience or training or a combinationaT both. This specialist background is the pedigree of the vast ma)oritYOf---m;nagers~-This can be demonstrated by probing into the background of a~_yone you knowwho has managerial responsibilities. Engineering managers,

)usiness .skill, for

become iecialistneer Orrvisorylelpingnot be1S, this:ome ald be ais maysibilityhwithme ofr-typecialistost ofcialist

often':laost~left-:ialistcent.18 on; the


0/0100

--..-I--..-I--I__.J Managerial activity...--IJ

./'./

75

2S

AGURE 1.2 The managerial

escalator

Years of employment (excluding lull-time training)

o10 15 20S

NATUREOFTHE PROBLEM

1l&~ (Ak Thepossession of specialist skills is normally an asset and in many cas_::squite indis-~ --7"':1 s .

f6 The skills of management

JOBTITLES The conflict between specialist and managerial roles can sometimes be revealed by thejob titles people use. A consultant working in the civil engineering industry found thatthe approach of the senior person on site was often indicated by whether they used thetitle 'site engineer' or .'site manager'. Job titles can be revealing in many otheroccupations as well, for example, the choice of the term 'buyer' or'department manager'in a department store. It could also be that the use of the term 'head teacher' !ndic~~.traditional orientation around teaching rather than the management of other teachers.

---~---,._ + - --

This can be reinforced by a perception tl1at the specialist activity is more important andhas more ~tatus than managerial activity. The speciaiiStCufiil7:etll"at e..'(lsts-inso mal7Yorgl1l1isatiollSis perhaps the biggest single obstacle to effective management.

THE GENERA')'ROBLEfVl/) -

: '1' .,":':'",....\ ",.,~~"-;~\t'~',.'\.,~".~,,. The dilemma of the spetialist who is forced into management is "centuated by the.' . . / _ \ ", _ _ difficulty that organisations have providing alternative career progtessions. In some

\

-,>0- \} V)' \. .. oY-'/' / .,.iV


und that

s trouble-shooting,I supervision of staff (including selection, on-the-job training, appraisal, counselling,

motivation, control and grievance handling),~ liaison with senior management, colleagues at a similar level and ancillary staff,III external liaison.

1)' otherlanager'Iicates aeachers.:antand

The flattening of many organisational structures has tended to increase the speed atwhich specialists accumulate managerial responsibilities. Reductions in the numbersof specialist advisers can also lead to a broadening of managerial roles. Conventionalspecialist and managerial careers and work boundaries are often breaking down so thatboth specialists and managers are having to become multiskilled. These developmentsand flexible management structures can also lead to greater lateral movement of per-sonnel in organisations .

.Ironically, it may be more feasible to have a person without specialist knowledge atthe-top of an orgamsanon ffiailiilleSssenior positions. A ch;~fexecutive can rely on a

~atisfclepartmentaJ heads andconcentrateon co-ordinating their work. Eventhen, however, the chief executive would need a good understanding of the environmentin which the organisation was operating and of the internal resources and constraintswithin their organisation.

'0 many

by the, someity fors to beigerialertise.

EMPLOYEE PRESSURES

The pressures for specialist career structures are often employee driven. Specialistsmay want to obtain the rewards usually associated with accepting managerial responsi-bility without actually accepting such responsibilities. Problems that this can cause forthe organisation are:

s theyabout's'can

pyinge the demand for highly paid specialist jobs may greatly exceed their availability,e the more highly paid specialists there are, the more the problems of integrating their

work with that of colieagues,(dl the incentive for and availability of other specialists to accept management

responsibilities can be reduced.

.d bydin.and

The above issues have arisen with regard to the teaching and nursing professions. In1998 the UK government announced plans for nursing consultants andsuperteachers'.Whilst this might be popular with members of the nursing and teaching professionswho get appointed to these positions, organisations will still be left with the problemsof finding enough capable specialists to undertake crucial manageria_l respon~ibili~es,The concept of 'superteachers' appears to have since become incorporated withperformance-related pay for teachers. Substantial rewards for good teachers may deterpeople from taking OIl positions with greater responsibility and will not ease thechronic shortage of capable head teachers and deputies. However, the introduction of'super-nurses' may have the advantage of reducing the pressures on scarce andexpensive medical staff.


nsfo~people opting out of managerialresponsibilities'gnise that it i~ertise withoutilisr areas, the'make a good)fmanagerial

IDENTIFY THE MANAGERIAL ELEMENT IN A JOB'-'----_.--_._.. . .

- to keep the

re essentialI


the specialist area - either through conscious design or, more likely, because they havenever really reasoned it through. The problems may be compounded by the actions andperceptions of their bosses. If the boss has not reasoned it through either, a pattern maybe created down the line. Alternatively, even if bosses have reasoned it through forthemselves, the appointment of subordinate managers may still be faulty.

REWARDS

~ The reasons why people strive to obtain positions that they cannot or will not handleQ:; properly needs some ex-plaining. A basic cause is that the structure of most organi-

sanons IS such that this may be theonly way for employees to gain promotion with theassociated increases in pay, status and authority. Employees may accept promotionwithout appreciating the shift in emphasis to managerial activity that is required. Onother occasions, people may have a calcuiated strate~ of~efits aspossible from a job but doing as little as pOSSIble01 the work involved... _ -_0.- . . _

----'7 WORK PREFERENCES

Employers may need to give some attention as to how they reward 'knowledge' workers.As explained in chapter 7, if a particular expertise really is critical to the success of anorganisation, it may be necessary to pay accordingly. Care needs to be taken that this is :not done on spurious grounds or that any advantages are greater than the disadvantageof discouraging people from accepting managerial responsibilities. The worst thing 10 '.do is to promote people into managerial jobs while Jetting them think that they need net .take their managerial responsibilities seriously.

specialisation). This can happen in many, if not all, managerial environments.this was explained to a group of transport managers they responded by saying tha~only did they recognise the phenomenon, but they also had a name for it. SUwho insisted on driving, ostensibly to 'keep their hand in', were described by

Managers and their background II

ern maylugh for

being 'cab happy'. Ex-pilots are notorious for this, and the tendency is reinforced by therequirement that ~ minimum number of hours must be flown to retai"n a-licenc~.]f thistype of achvn}' oniy happens occasionally, perhaps one should not worry too much.When it forms a regular pattern, though, there is likely to be a serious problem.

Another problem can arise people with a background in a particular managementspecialism. Like other specialists, they may pay too much attention to their area ofhistoric specialisation. Consequently, they may give too much priority in terms of timeand decision making to issues in their specialised area.

handleirgam.ith the

[notion '>ed. On'fits as

..: ,-

nyIt,- ..dis'O.d.::~:;!(,,:':'~.;.:::i'\.,., : '.,~:

ers.ansis1getolot

PERSO,,!A~!T'(F~

/12 The skills of management

of products and safeguarding of knowledge which might be useful to competitors(Bladder ana Shimmin 1984: 23). The conflict between these sets of values-;;;y b~_tr_:.-cipitated by promotion and creat~


developing countries, demonstrate the international nature of the problems identifiedin this chapter.

Managers are likely to be judged ultimately by the results they achieve through con-sfructive management of employees - not by possession of specialist knowledge. Thespecialist knowledge that managers require is that which enables them to superviseothers. If subordinates can do a particular job better than the manager, the manager'sskill is in arranging them to do so. To compete with the subordinate and then fail ishardly recommended.

There is a world of difference between a manager having no specialist competenceand having sufficient specialist knowledge to supervise subordinates. The latter may bequite sufficient. It would be very nice if all managers knew more about every aspect ofthe subordinate's job than the subordinate, but it is not very realistic, particularly withchanging technology. It may also not do a great deal for the esteem of subordinates. The'manager may have to face up to being confronted by a specialist issue that they cannotdeal with. Rather than worry about this, it may be that this is simply an instance whenthe manager reroutes the subordinate to a source where they may get theinformation. The emphasis needs to be on seeing that the specialists maintaindevelop their skill base rather than on the manager trying to do this.

A whole host of problems can arise if the weaning process, whereby thosemanagerial responsibilities get the right balance of specialist and managerial

GENERAL CONSEQUENCESOF OPTING-OUT


is not satisfactorily accomplished. This is the recurrent theme of this chapter. Oftenmanagers show favouritism in the allocation of resources to their own area of interestand historical specialisation.

The remedial strategies needed to d~L wLth the problem Qf .poor managerial perfor-.- mance involve dealing with the four basic causes of ineffective performance identifiedin the introduction to this chapter. These issues are so important that they are worthrepeating before being addressed in detail. They are:

I role definition.'? managerial selection,e training and development,o monitoring.

ROLE DEFINITION

con-The

When managers are reluctant to accept managerial responsibility, a key remedial strategyis to make such responsibilities crystal clear. This is also necessary if the other remedialstrategies of selection, training and development, and monitoring are to be effective.This role dari Kation needs to be an inteoral art of selection, and the need to highlightt~~e_n~aI)agerial aspects of a job are necessary for both applicants and those makingappointments. This issue is given particular attention in the following section onmanagerial selection.

'viseger'sil is MANAGERIAL SELECTION

nee;bet of'ith'helot

There are a variety of reasons why the wrong people are given managerial responsibilityTwo key mistakes are considered i;;-thi;sec-tlo~:~'iz. failure to recognise the manag~rialelement in jobs and general selection incompetence. Intervention strategies need to bebased on avoiding such mistakes.

en:htld

Mistake No, 1: Failure to identify and select on the basis of the managerialelement in a job

The easiest way to choose a manager is to look at their historical performance and, appoint or reject on that basis. The danger in this approach is, however, that ~here may _be critical differences between tb.e...d!J.tie.s..lhat-a..p.ersOI1-ha&.perfofmed.inthe_lillS.Land.

ihose that they may be expected to perform in the future. Unfortunately, this pointrna)' not be properly grasped and, in any case, it is so much easier to assess historicalperformance rather than speculate about a person's managerial potential. It is, for

:hy,

'..


choose the right person for the future. In the police service this sometimessergeants being regarded as 'constables with stripes on their arms'.

~=-::~~~~~~~~~~~~~E~~~~.:.:.:::~~:..:..::However, those whofind that they have emerged through the selection system as managers need to addressthemselves to the behaviour that will be appropriate, even if those appointing themnot. A further obstacle to appointment on the basis of suitability to the job in the UKhas,historically at least, been the importance of social class. According to Sease and Goffee,

The 'skills'that have been traditionally,but perhaps erroneously,associatedwith leader-ship may be difficult to acquire, if only because they are derived through particularchild-rearingpatterns, education and class-based experiences. The persistence of suchstyles resuitsfrom the tendency for senior managers to recruit successorswith similar.personal characteristics. Such processes militate against the career opportunities ofthosefrom working-class origins, of women and of others who have been unable toacquire the intangible but realpersonal attributes of classprivilege.

t \. -.

; .

The problems that can arise as a result of selecting on the basis of historicare satirically and amusingly explained in the book The PeterPrincipleby Peter and(1970). Their observations contain more than a germ of truth. The basicexplained in the book is that if one looks backward in time instead of forwardselecting, people will rise up through organisational hierarchies until they passthreshold of competence. Only when that has happened will there be no basisappointment at a higher level of responsibility. The basic Peter Principle is statedthat: 'In a hierarchy evel)' employee tends to rise to his (or her) level of .Corollaries are:


ional foot.5e of skillsf selectors

e in time, every post tends to be occupied by an employee who is incompetent to carryout its duties;

$ work is accomplished by those employees who have not yet reached their level ofincompetence (Peter and Hull 1990:22-24).

The material in chapter 9 on selection gives practical guidance on how to appoint on thebasis of'fit' with the job. It is crucial that the managerial ability or potential is includedin selection criteria. It is also important that those undertaking the selection are com-petent in the techniques of selection, also explained in chapter 9.

_

Whilst management training is a key intervention are\-r r 110NITORINGThe fourth key intervention is monitoring. This applies whether a manager is managingothers or reviewingtheir ~~lan.ce_;rhe good work in trying to ensure accuraterole definition, selection, and training and development can easily be undone if there is

'ice'.


no effective monitoring. Akey feature of any strategy for correcting imbalance in the jobis for those likely to experience the problem to be made more aware of it. They maydo this for themselves by learning, perhaps on a trial and error basis. However, trainingand monitoring of performance can help to ensure that people do not have to learneverything the hard way - or even not at all. Unfortunately, if an organisation has toomuch of a specialist culture, it is particularly likely that those with managerialresponsibilities will fail to see the need to monitor and then correct the performance oftheir subordinates or themselves .

.Managers have a responsibility to see that the training and development of them-selves and their staff fits into an integrated pattern. These are not activities that can behandled just by training departments or by sending people on courses. Performancemanagement, on-the-job learning, appraisal, coac_hingand formal training need to beintegrated. There is a particular responsibility for bosses to see that those who aregiven managerial responsibilities are also given help through appraisal, counselling andcoaching. This is particularly necessary when people make critical moves up themanagerial escalator. $0 often people are 'thrown in at the deep end' by managerswho have not handled the transitional problems properly themselves and 'who blamesubordinates for their shortcomings in a new job. The developmental strategies andtechniques mentioned in this section are given more detailed attention in chapter J L

if The basics of management have been identified as a necessary prelude both to thechapter and the book. The essence of management is that it involves achievingresults through others. Most managers gradually acquire managerial responsibilityand change, in an escalator-like progression, from being specialists to being themanagers of specialists. Most managerial activiry is probably undertaken by IIVLIIl"''- ...(i.e. people who combine specialist and managerial activity). Unfortunately, thereoften a conflict between the work that those with managerial responsibilities preferto do and organisational priorities. Many specialists undertake managerial duties.because of the lack of an alternative career structure. There are considerablepracticable difficulties preventing organisations arranging specialist career structures.

V It is by understanding the above issues that individuals can understand t~;pressures on them to undertake managerial responsibilities and how they ,~handle them effectively.From an organisational point of view the four key remeOIa.~Jtl.lstrategies are:

e the accurate definition of managerial roles,e effective managerial selection,e/ appropriate and adequate management training and development,e the effective monitoring of those with management responsibilities.


r./ From an individual's point of view it is particularly important to define one's roleaccurately, plan appropriate training and development, and develop means of self-monitoring.

hi' Having identified the need for the proper definition of managerial roles as the firstin this sequence of activities both organisationally and individually, it is appropriatethat this forms the subject matter of chapter 2.

\,.'

,'.' ..' .j"',

1. How did Mary Parker Follett define management?

2. \"'hy are people with managerial responsibilities likely to have a specialistbackground?

ersne1d

,G

r"

t- ,;

e,)

3. Why do organisations find it difficult to provide specialist career structures?

4. Why might those with managerial responsibilities neglect them in favour ofspecialist activity"

5. \'\'here are you on the managerial escalator? Where might you be in five years?

6. What are the four key areas where attention is needed to ensure that those withmanagerial responsibilities perform effectively?

(., References) (Works of general interest in the specific references are marked with a star.)

Blackler,Frank and Sheila Shimmin, (1984) Applying Psychology ill Organisations, Methuen.This paraphrases T. Keenan's (1980) work, which is contained in 'Stress and theProfessional Engineer', in CA. Cooper and J. Marshall (eds), White-collar andProfessional Stress,Wiley,p.p. 23-24.

Coles,Margaret (1997) 'IT skills shortage stumps recruiters' (report of a survey by Theaker,Monro & Newman,Sunday Times appointments section, 16November).

Commons Select Committee on Culture, Media and the Arts (l997), Chairman GeraldKaufman, reported in the Evening Standard, London, 3 December.

Fayol,Henri, General and Industrial Management, revised by Irwin Gray (1988), Pitman.Graham, Pauline (1998) Dynamic Managing - The Follett Way, Professional Publishing.

,. Handy, Charles (1991) The Age of Unreason,Business Studies Books, 2nd ed.Lever, D. and Blease, D. (October 1992) 'what Do Primary Headteachers Really Do?'

Educational Studies.Local Government Management Board (1993)Managing Tomorrow,Panel of Inquiry report.

,. Mintzberg, H. (1989) Mintzberg 011Management, The Free Press.Mead, R. (1998) International Management: CrossCultural Dimensions. 2nd ed., Blackwell

Business.

Ntr986B.PDF

Managers and Their Background

Documents

Transcript of Managers and Their Background