Making sense of being a manager
(Originally published on the OUBS Blog)
‘Why do managers do what they do?’ 1973, Mintzberg. He found that Managers have 10 roles in 3 Areas:
1\. Interpersonal
1.1. figurehead [representing the organisation]
1.2. leader [bring together needs of organisation, individuals]
1.3. liason [network of relationships inside and outside of orga.]
2\. Informational
2.1. monitoring [seeking and receiving info from inside and outside]
2.2. dissemination [passing on that information]
2.3. spokesperson [to general public and positions of influence]
3\. Decisional
3.1. entrepreneurs [proactive, initiate change and take active part]
3.2. disturbance handlers [decide from events beyond your control]
3.3. resource allocation [scheduling time, programming work, authorizing actions]
3.4. negotiation
These roles can overlap, have different weighting and change over time.
There are different approaches to management and one item discussed in more detail is scientific management which works by observation, quantification, analysis, experimentation and evaluation to behaviour in the workplace (as of Taylor). You use this to find the best method and to develop and standardised procedure for implementation.
Stewart (1982) suggests that any job is a combination of demands and constraints which together define the choices available to a manger.
You have different demands on you:
\- manager-imposed
\- peer-imposed
\- externally imposed
\- system-imposed
\- staff-imposed
\- self-imposed
You also have different constraints set against them
\- resource limitations
\- legal regulations
\- trade union agreements
\- technological limitations
\- physical location
\- organisation policies and procedures
\- people’s attitudes and expectations
Quote from the book: Thee is often a tension in management between responding to demands (being reactive) and taking the intitiative (being proactive). This can be a vicious circle, as you need to create the time to take action to reduce short-term demands on your time.
Another theory, contingency theory, suggests that an organisation will be more successful if it consciously adapts its structures and its administrative arrangements to the tasks that need to be done. That means that some are performing better under specific circumstances.
The final thing that is discussed is that the environment has an effect on the organisation. To be exact the changing information and communications technology, deregulation, globalistation, competition and working practices.
This impacts managers in terms of increasing work load, increased span of control (higher delegation need), more generalist roles, greater emphasis on performance, the squeeze (pressure from above for performance and below due to more people), empowerment, career prospect (security has declined) and impact on lifestyle.