People leave Managers, not Companies
What kind of Manager are you?
This Blog is based on the ‘High-Performance Management and Teams’ (Futcher Principle™) a leadership model written by the author. The model is presented here as a self-managing course for developing High-Performance Managers and Teams, it is based on many years of IT management consulting across the Insurance, Banking, Finance, Health, Transport, Retail, Superannuation and Technology sectors.
"Don't assume your team can't achieve High-Performance, they can.
The personal and professional benefits are substantial as is job satisfaction."
The author considers that the concepts of leadership and management are transposable and are not just inseparable; they are the same. Together, leading (visionary) and managing (task-orientation) form a framework of skills and behaviours that are necessary to drive High-Performance Team success.
Consider 3 Leadership models, which one do you identify with?
The first is the ‘Traditional leadership model’.
Also known as the’ directive or command and control’ structure, first conceived in the Industrial Revolution of the 1800s and refined after WW2. It is the conventional way of managing the organisation’s around the world today. It has the following features.
There is a hierarchy of employees.
An organisational chart with a manager at the head.
A senior executive or board holds power.
Managers often rule with compulsion, force, control and secrecy.
Managers are often viewed as intimidating people.
Managers jobs are to plan, organise staff, direct and control.
Managers command respect through seniority and years of service.
Some managers will, when necessary use physical, psychological, and economic force.
All efforts are directed at achieving results as evidence of success.
Managers get rewards for achieving results, staff do not.
Managers do not always welcome new ideas and are often unaware of changes and problems.
These managers tend to have frequent staff turnover.
– (edited) Kermit Burley, 2017.
The second is the ‘Transformational leadership model.
It has these features:
Motivate staff to do more than they originally intended and more than they thought possible.
Set more challenging expectations.
Typically achieve higher performances.
Are charismatic, staff seek to emulate them.
Inspire their staff with challenge and persuasion.
Are intellectually stimulating, expanding staffs use of their abilities.
Are individually considerate, pay attention to staff needs, mentor and coach.
Are admired, respected, trusted and encourage creativity and innovation.
Do not publicly criticise an individual’s mistakes.
Create new learning opportunities with a supportive climate.
Recognise individual differences in terms of needs and desires.
Accept individual differences (e.g., some staff receive more encouragement, some more autonomy, others firmer standards, and still others more task structure).
Delegate tasks as a means of developing staff.
- (edited) Bernard M Basa.
The third is the ‘High-Performance Management and Teams’ leadership model’.
Developed by the author; (High-Performance Management and Teams (Futcher Principle™).
It considers that the concepts of leadership and management are transposable and are not just inseparable; they are the same.
It is based on Transformational leadership.
It trains managers to become High-Performance Managers.
It emphasises people leadership skills.
It introduces High-Performance team-based behaviours and techniques.
It trains all levels of management (not just senior executives) on how to manage and lead.
It builds High-Performance Teams.
This model is a way forward; it coexists with and complements the Traditional model. It provides a pathway and environment where organisations can gradually move from the old Traditional to the to the new Transformational, by using High-Performance Teams.
Employees are demanding higher levels of job satisfaction and managers who are open and honest and who value their employees’ contributions, they want to be recognised for their efforts, work in a collaborative environment and have a say in how the workplace is managed.
The Transitional approach identifies and calls out leaders who rule with compulsion and force.
It is being driven by the new Millennial workforce, who are vocal about what they want their workplace to look like, millennials will not accept the old-style methods of the Traditional model.
The new workforce.
The new generation of Millennials or knowledge workers is changing the business world. Information has become the most valuable of business assets and creative thinking the most sought-after skill, something Millennials have in spades.
Millennial workforce expectations do not fit with the Traditional command-and-control approach, which is more managing and administering than leading and is viewed as stifling, unreasonable and unwarranted.
Unlike the Baby Boomers before them, Millennials are not prepared to be quiet about this, and they are making their feelings known about their attitudes towards work and their expectations about how they want to be treated at work.
Millennials respond favourably to the Transitional model. High-Performance Teams are perfect for them. It fulfils their willingness and desire to work across teams, as well as their constant need for feedback and reinforcement and praise for their being tech-savvy.
No matter how they are viewed, the simple truth is that Millennials look at work dramatically differently than the generation that immediately preceded them.
Think your team can’t do it?
Here is an example of a team in a very sorry state that I moved to High-Performance.
Mc Donalds Manager.
A newly appointed senior executive at a company asked me to look over his IT Department and deal with any issues. The department had a reputation for poor performance and service. It was a large enterprise that had old IT systems and a deeply rooted Traditional management structure. I soon discovered that the IT Manager in charge had a regular habit of taking his managers to Mc Donald’s on a Monday morning, then returning to eat in his office. His office walls were floor to ceiling clear glass. As they ate, they decided amongst themselves which member of staff they would single out, bully and torment that week. All in full view of the staff who knew what they were up to. As you might imagine, the people were traumatised, timid, unwilling to venture an opinion on anything and mostly hidden behind their desk partitions in fear of their managers.
Suffice to say this practice did not last long. This team achieved great success with outstanding job satisfaction, productivity and service improvements.
What kind of manager are you? What kind do you want to be?
The ‘High-Performance Management and Teams’ (Futcher Principle™) trains managers on the Transformational model approach, including how to build High-Performance Teams.
High-Performance Teams examples:
IT and Business Management Teams.
IT and Business Projects.
IT/Business integration.
IT Technical and Service Delivery teams.
Teams to manage mergers and acquisitions.
Managed Services and Supplier management teams.
Finance departments.