Management or Leadership: Are they different?
Written by: Tom Sawyer
Let’s talk about management since many professionals’ desire is to climb the corporate ladder. The logical place to start would be to talk about management versus leadership – the two terms are used interchangeably and I think that is an error.
In my opinion, it doesn’t matter if we are talking about a janitorial crew or an IT staff–the most important social/management aspects someone must understand is the difference between managing and leading. Management is the act of directing and controlling a group of people for the purpose of coordinating and harmonizing the group towards accomplishing a goal beyond the scope of individual effort. Leadership can be defined as the ability to affect human behavior so as to accomplish a mission designated by the leader. The biggest difference between managers and leaders is the way they motivate the people who work or follow them, and this sets the tone for most other aspects of what they do. The first characteristic of a leader is the ability to lead. Leaders lead people while managers manage tasks – there is a difference. I have seen many so-called leaders who have tons of position power without any personal power. For instance, I know my co-workers (I don’t like to even say the people who work for me) will do something for Thomas the boss, but I also think they would do something for Thomas the person and to me that is more important.
The second characteristic a leader is the ability to handle conflict efficiently. Some people just don’t like conflict and will do almost anything to avoid it. Conflict can have a positive impact in some situations and should be avoided if for no other reason than it allows people to get on with business afterward.
The third characteristic of a leader is the ability to manage time and/or projects effectively and efficiently. This is especially important in the IT department. IT is such an important aspect of many businesses and it isn’t a good situation if the a department is routinely missing deadlines, overlooking important project details or failing to provide previously agreed upon services. I think one negative result concerning this would be lost credibility. I think it is a huge thing when someone starts to lose faith in a department – I’ve been down this road several times.
Management/Leadership is a slippery slope and probably a situation where one size will never fit all. There are too many variables to list, but one factor is a person’s own personality. A specific training class could prove beneficial to one person and serve absolutely no purpose for the person sitting right beside him/her. Some personalities are better served to be “worker bees” – this isn’t necessarily a negative thing because there are many happy and well-paid worker bees. Having said all that, I would start a manager’s training much the same as any other person new to a supervisory role: a train the trainer type course. From there, an appropriate course would involve discussion of various aspects of management versus leadership and the characteristics associated with each. This would serve as an opportunity for the individual to get to know their strengths and weaknesses. Finally, I would suggest a project management type course with the goal of becoming a certified Project Manager.
A management position, regardless of the career field, just isn’t for everyone – that is something I think should be stressed often. I’ve seen several examples of someone being placed in a management position based on rank/tenure. It can be glossed over because that person may have the title or years or service for the position, but the reality is this could be a mistake because this leads to forcing a position on someone who cannot adequately handle it.
So what do you think? Is it better to be a manager or a leader (if you had to choose just one)? Also, should someone be placed in a position based on rank or tenure within a company?
May 24th, 2008 at 7:41 am
Good read! Leadership is often thrust upon some people and then the good workers cover up for their lack of leadership skills. Unfortunately, something like this could go on for years.