MGMT 214: MANAGEMENT & LEADERSHIP: A SEMINAR WITH CEOS ASSIGNMENT 3: Term Paper COMPLETED BY: Toh Shiqi

EXCELLING AS A MANGER IN THE 21 S T CENTURY & BEYOND: BEING A MANAGER-LEADER

The idea of constant change has been present since ancient times. However, aided by the mega trends of globalization and technological advancement, change is ongoing at an accelerating rate in todays world. As a result, firms and their stakeholders are experiencing issues that they have never had to face at such unprecedented levels. In this paper, I shall first present the case for why firms need to adapt more quickly than ever in order to survive. This will be followed by how managers can excel in todays business context of constant and rapid change, simply by being a manager-leader who is more adept to change, instead of a pure manager.

THE ONLY CONSTANT IS CHANGE

The two most prevalent mega trends in todays business textbooks are globalization and technological advancement. These two complementing trends are bringing change more rapidly than ever experienced to the world as we know it. Thus, firms in todays business climate need to be able to cope with change at these unprecedented levels, or face elimination. Globalization levels the playing field within industries, eliminating cross-geographic and cross-cultural barriers which once prohibited the entrance of foreign firms. Consequently, firms are required to engage in constant and rapid transformation within each region to ensure their own survival as they become increasingly engaged with stakeholders all over the globe. Mark Gordon (2011) gave an example of American Express, which was attempting to expand its services to China by transferring an advertising campaign which was wildly successful in the American and European markets. Yet, because of a difference in cultures, the advertising campaign failed. Only upon understanding the cultural issue at hand with the help of a third party, was the firm able to change its approach to one that was more palatable to Chinese businessmen. In this example, American Express was able to adapt to the new environment presented in the form of a Chinese market, and hence, gain competitiveness and presence. Correspondingly, its competitors in the Chinese market had to adapt to the success of American Express or face elimination, and the cycle continues. As globalization increases its pace, firms rate of transformation for survival will mount as well. Similarly, technological advances have allowed firms to engage with stakeholders in unprecedented ways. This presents both new opportunities and threats to the advancement of firm. A recent example is the advent of online music and entertainment retailers such as the iTunes music store, which managed to undermine physical sellers of high-cost CDs, VCDs and DVDs. The rate at which disruptive technologies emerge is intensifying, causing firms not ahead of the curve to fail. In essence, He who changes the rules of the game, wins (Karmjit Singh, 2011). To stay relevant in todays business climate, firms need to be able to promptly deal with change brought about by the mega trends of globalization and technological advancement.

Accordingly, firms are increasingly hiring manager-leaders rather than pure managers in order to cope with the influx of change. Put simply, manager-leaders are executives who are able to both lead and implement change. Before going into the specifics of manager-leaders, let us first explore the fundamental differences between pure managers and leaders.

WHICH EXECUTIVE? A MANAGER OR A LEADER?

Traditionally, firms have employed two types of executives leaders and managers. John Kotter (1990)1 summarized the difference between the two categories of executives as follows: Management is about coping with complexity Leadership, by contrast, is about coping with change. In a similar vein, Fabio Landazabal (2011) emphasized that Managers manage resourcesLeaders manage people The two statements above may not seem linked in any sense, but are in essence complementary. Managers are typically hired to optimize the allocation of resources within departments, which ultimately results in complexity within organizations. Abraham Zalezniks (1977)2 observations indicate that in conflicts (which often occur due to resource allocation struggles between units), managers have to strive to convert win-lose situations into win-win situations so as to promote stability and control within an organization. These results in the use a variety of methods, including focusing others attention on procedure and not on substance, communication with indirect signals rather than direct messages, and playing for time to allow naturally reach a consensus by different groups of people eventually. The moves made by managers whilst managing resources result in more complexity, but eventually lead to win-win situations in which stability and control of the organization is not lost. Hence, the role of the manager allows for stability and control, without which firms would be in continual chaos, and unable to function. On the contrary, leaders are hired to disrupt stability and control, increasing the possibility of the firms advancement by initiating transformation of the firm. As change comes along, leaders are needed to set new directions, align people, and motivate and inspire employees (Kotter, 1990). According to Landazabal (2011), leaders come up with solutions to problems the firm meets. This is in contrast to implementing solutions via the efficient allocation of resources, as managers do. The pure managers emphasis would solely be on conflict management and ensuring the smooth running of the firm. Leaders on the other hand, would be willing to put up with chaos or change in other words, through exploring new ideas and new ways of doing things in the course of achieving the desired vision, so as to allow the firm to grow and advance. As a result, leaders require a different set of skills from pure managers, without which any firm would be unable to survive in todays changing world. In essence, leadership is doing the right thing; management is doing things right (Linda Ng, 2011). The skill sets of both leaders and managers are required for firms to grow and advance successfully whereby management skills ensure the smooth running of the firm whilst leadership skills seek ways to continually improve the firm from its current standing.

2Manager

What Leaders Really Do, John P. Kotter, Harvard Business Review 1990 and Leaders Are They Different?, Abraham Zaleznik, Harvard Business Review 1977

BEING AN EFFECTIVE MANAGER: A MANAGER-LEADER

As previously mentioned, due to the rapid rate at which change occurs in todays business world, firms are appreciating the presence of manager-leaders. Simply put, these are managers who are able to cope with change as leaders do on a daily basis, exhibiting the leadership skills required on a small scale at a regional, divisional or unit level. The reason for this is simple: leaders at the top levels of firms are simply too swamped by the changes brought about by mega trends which affect the firm in larger ways. Hence, in order to excel, managers simply need to be the leaders on the ground that are able to advance the firm by implementing changes at the divisional level rather than simply following procedures and maintaining order. However, because not all managers are leaders, most managers need to learn to be leaders. I do believe that leadership can be learnt, and they can be done by the following steps. The first step to being a leader is awareness. Specifically, self-awareness and environmental awareness are needed. Self-awareness refers to knowing your personal strengths and weaknesses, especially those that are unique to you (Singh, 2011). In addition, the ability to read and understand your emotions as well as recognize their impact on work performance, relationship, and the like (Daniel Goleman, 2000)3 is also crucial for knowing the leadership style that you are naturally more inclined towards in a situation. Such selfawareness is imperative for leaders as it would allow you to surround yourself with personnel who possess complementary strengths to fill in personal gaps (Landazabal, 2011). Environmental awareness is about knowing the situation and those of the people around you. Only through environmental awareness can leaders know what is at stake. Gordon (2011) pointed out that understanding the values and cultures of the other stakeholders at large would allow mutual understanding, and hence, a working relationship. In a similar vein, Philip Jeyaratnam (2011) highlighted understanding the values and culture of the organization, so as to be able to serve to the best interests of the firm. To get a good sense of situations, a leader would need to employ both the macro and micro views, or in the words of Anil Kishora (2011), keeping in view the tree in the forest and the forest in the tree. In addition, communicating with stakeholders and employees is key to gaining environmental awareness. In particular, face-to-face interaction time and the ability to empathize with authenticity are vital in allowing leaders to gain access to information otherwise unobtainable (Singh, 2011 and Landazabal, 2011). Only be gaining a better sense of what is at stake can an individual make better decisions in the face of change. Upon gaining the awareness required, leaders can then adopt the appropriate leadership style depending on the situation. Mike Teng (2011) drew attention to a few distinctive or dominant leadership styles which were required in different periods of a firms growth cycle. Jeyaratnam (2011) also briefly touched on this point whilst using the analogy of being either a tiger or a buffalo. Daniel Goleman (2000) goes further as to describe six different types of leadership, as shown in the table below.

Leadership That Gets Results, Daniel Goleman, Harvard Business Review March-April 2000

Modus Operandi Demands immediate compliance Mobilizes people towards a vision Creates harmony and builds emotional bonds Forges consensus through participation Sets high standards for performance Develops people for the future

When it works best In a crisis, to kick start a turnaround, or with problem employees. When changes require a new vision, or when a clear direction is needed To heal rifts in a team or to motivate people during stressful circumstances To build buy-in or consensus, or to get input from valuable employees To get quick results from a highly motivated and competent team To help an employee improve performance or develop long-term strengths

Underlying emotional intelligence competencies Drive to achieve, initiative, self-control Self-confidence, empathy, change catalyst Empathy, building relationships, communication Collaboration, team leadership, communication Conscientiousness, drive to achieve, initiative Developing others, empathy, self-awareness

Coercive

Authoritative

Affiliative

Democratic

Pacesetting

Coaching

Source: Leadership that gets results, by Daniel Goleman, Harvard Business Review, March-April 2000

It must be noted that no matter the leadership style that one is most comfortable with, one should not stick to a certain leadership style throughout. On the contrary, leaders should continually return to the first step of being aware and continue with the second step of adopting a leadership style. In fact, research indicates that leaders with best results do not rely on only one leadership style; they use most of them in a given week seamlessly and in different measure depending on the business situation (Goleman, 2000). Managers should not be afraid to employ different leadership styles as they deem fit, as experience counts in this matter. Goleman (2000) has shown a successful example in which a marketing director of a division of a global food company was fixated in a pacesetting leadership style. Through feedback from a third party about his strengths and weaknesses, the director became more self-aware, after which he continually employed the first and second steps in a cycle, resulting in improved leadership.

BE A MANAGER-LEADER IF YOU WANT YOUR JOB

Notice that the stiffest tree is most easily cracked, while the bamboo or willow survives by bending with the wind (Bruce Lee). In todays business climate of accelerating change brought about by the mega-trends of globalization and technological change, managers can distinguish themselves by becoming manager-leaders rather than simply pure managers. This can be achieved by the two-step process of awareness and the employment of leadership on a continual basis. Without this distinction, pure managers whose focus is on maintaining and oiling the gears may lose out to other managers who are better able to assist top management in adapting to the ever-changing business climate by changing the position of the gears for the survival and advancement of the firm.
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