Poor Leadership or Bad Management

It’s a simple question easily answered: it’s always bad management. Here’s why. Poor leadership doesn’t exist. There is either a lack of leadership or bad management but there is never any poor leadership. If it’s poor, it’s not leadership – it’s an absence of leadership.

So why do I even bring this subject up? I bring it up because I’m sick and tired of organizations encouraging their people to abdicate responsibility for their actions by blaming an entity that is faceless, has no name nor can be considered tangible. Mediocre organizations and their employees are too quick to claim poor leadership when something goes wrong when, in fact, it is either a lack of leadership or bad management that causes a problem. And if there’s a lack of leadership, then that’s just bad management.

It’s as though we need to blame something but we just don’t have the stones to point the finger at someone specific.

But when you blame bad management, that always falls on one person. One person becomes accountable and responsible. And if you’re going to be able to blame one person for a mess-up in an organization, then everyone can be blamed for their actions – including you!

Leadership, as a whole, is anonymous – anyone can have influence in leadership. Management, however, has a name. And anyone with a management position could be on the hook at any time.

Not much wonder organizations are falling all over themselves to move to leadership training over management training: there are no consequences if you get it wrong. It allows an organization to collectively shoulder a burden when something goes wrong but no one specifically is to blame. But when you point the finger at management, you point the finger at actual names on the doors of the offending department. When management gets it wrong, one person gets singled out – every time.

I applaud the managers who stick their necks out and who are accountable and responsible for their actions. It will inspire employees far more than trying to hide behind cowardly “leadership” labels.
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Kevin Burns - Management Attitude/Culture Strategist
http://www.kevburns.com

Creator of Filter-Free Fridays™
Creator of the 90-Day System To A Greatness Culture™

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