How can we improve the quality of management in our companies? What is the future of Management? London Business School Professor Julian Birkinshaw, presented a comprehensive view on this topical discussion at this year’s Alumni Reunion.
Why Good Management is so Difficult – LBS Professor Julian Birkinshaw
1. Uncommon Sense
Why Good Management is So Difficult
Professor Julian Birkinshaw
London Business School
& The Management Lab
Alumni Reunion, May 2012
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
2. Quick Quiz:
To what extent does your current boss…
Answer on a 1-5 scale: 1=not at all, 2=not really, 3=neutral, 4=to some extent, 5=to a very great extent
1. …seek growth for growth’s sake?
2. …pursue ‘pet’ projects he/she is interested in, regardless of
whether they fit with the organisation’s goals?
3. …become visibly angry at work when relatively small mistakes
are made?
4. …get overly involved in the details of all the projects he/she is
responsible for?
5. …seek out recognition and plaudits for what he/she has
achieved?
6. …try to take credit for the good work of others?
7. …organise things for his/her own convenience, rather than
taking care of the needs and interests of others?
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
3. A Puzzle
If something doesn’t work very well
And a (proven) better alternative exists…
Surely we would expect everyone to gravitate
towards that alternative?
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
5. Who are you happiest with?
Friends 3.3
Parents/relatives 3.0
Spouse 2.8
My children 2.7
Co-workers 2.6
Clients/customers 2.4
Alone 2.2
Boss 2.0
(Rating is on a 1-5 scale)
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
6. Cynicism about the quality of
management in UK companies is rife
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
7. Companies that put their employees
first appear to do very well
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
8. Companies that put their employees first
are more profitable
• “Based on 7,939 business units, Positive relationships were
found between employee satisfaction/engagement and business
outcomes including profit” (Harter et al, 2002)
• Companies on the “100 Best Companies to Work For” list
enjoy positive workforce attitudes and performance advantages
over the broad market” (Fulmer et al, 2003)
• “A value-weighted portfolio of the 100 Best Companies earned
an annual alpha of 3.5% from 1984 to 2009” (Edmans, 2011)
This is not a new story!
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
9. Resolving the puzzle – from two
different directions
A top-down perspective
(rethinking the “system” of management)
A bottom-up perspective
(rethinking the “role” of management)
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
10. Rethinking the System of Management
Business Model Management Model
Choices an organisation Choices firms make
make about: about:
• Sources of revenue • Coordinating activities
• Cost structure • Making decisions
• What to make / buy • Motivating employees
• How to make a profit • Defining objectives
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
11. A Framework for reinventing
management
Coordinating Activities
Bureaucracy Emergence
Making Decisions
Hierarchy Collective Wisdom
Motivating People
Extrinsic Intrinsic
Defining Objectives
Alignment Obliquity
Traditional Principles Alternative Principles
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
12. Obliquity
Goals are best achieved indirectly
If you want to get to point A, aim at point B
Don't aim at success — the more you aim at it and make it a target, the
more you are going to miss it. For success, like happiness, cannot be pursued;
it must ensue, and it only does so as the unintended side effect of one's
personal dedication to a cause greater than oneself.
Viktor Frankl, Holocaust Survivor and Philosopher
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
13. How do people think management will
change over the next five years?
1 2 3 4
Bureaucracy Emergence
Hierarchy Collective Wisdom
Extrinsic Intrinsic
Alignment Obliquity
Our Management Our Management
Model today Model in 5 years
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
14. Resolving the puzzle – from two
different directions
A top-down perspective
(rethinking the “system” of management)
A bottom-up perspective
(rethinking the “role” of management)
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
15. Two different ways of thinking about
management
What do we want to How should we act to
get done? harness their latent
enthusiasm and skill?
How do we need to What hopes, aspirations,
act to get our fears, concerns do
employees to do it? employees experience
at work?
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
16. The current research: Enabling our
employees to do their best work
Part 1
• What makes my work motivating and
fulfilling?
• What are my fears, concerns and
frustrations in the workplace?
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
17. Respondents are worried about lack of
opportunities, and failing to deliver
Lack of opportunities for advancement 3.3
Fear of failing to deliver to expectations 3.3
Lack of clarity about organisation vision 2.8
Lack of resources for getting work done 2.8
Incompetence/negative attitudes at work 2.8
Lack of fit with organisation’s values 2.8
Fear of looking foolish with colleagues 2.6
Excessive change/turbulence in workplace 2.6
(Rating is on a 1-5 scale)
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
18. A hierarchy of employee’s
“fears, concerns and frustrations”
Lack of opportunities for personal development
Self-
actualisation Fear of failing to deliver on (high) expectations
Esteem, Concern with the stress of the work
achievement, respect Frustration with ineffective processes
Belonging, love, friendship Concern about not fitting in
Concern with uncertainty and change
Safety, security of employment
Fear of redundancy
Physiological needs
Maslow’s Hierarchy Employee fears and concerns
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
19. The current research
Part 2
• What are the characteristics of a good
boss and a bad boss?
• What are the specific things he or she
does that enable me (or not) do my best
work?
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
20. The Seven Deadly Sins of Management
• Envy
• Greed
• Gluttony
• Lust
• Pride
• Sloth
• Wrath
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
22. Goal Setting Sins
• Greed – Empire building, growth
for growth’s sake, overseeing
rather than adding value
• Lust – desire to pursue pet
projects for their own sake,
rather than to further the
organisation’s goals
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
24. Monitoring Sins
• Wrath – blowing up at the
slightest error, being an asshole,
poisoning the culture
• Gluttony – taking too much on,
stealing others decisions, not
delegating
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
25. GREED
LUST
Setting
Goals
Making Monitoring WRATH
adjustments Performance GLUTTONY
Reviewing
results
PRIDE
ENVY Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
26. Reviewing Sins
• Pride – hubris, believing your
own hype, not admitting your
mistakes
• Envy – not recognising the
achievements of others, trying
to take credit for their work
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
27. GREED
LUST
Setting
Goals
Making Monitoring WRATH
SLOTH adjustments Performance GLUTTONY
Reviewing
results
PRIDE
ENVY
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
28. Adjustment Sins
• Sloth – not caring about
others, inattentive, more
concerned for your own
comforts than those of
others, abrogation of
responsibilities
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
29. Quick Quiz:
To what extent does your current boss…
Answer on a 1-5 scale: 1=not at all, 2=not really, 3=neutral, 4=to some extent, 5=to a very great extent
1. GREED…seek growth for growth’s sake?
2. LUST…pursue ‘pet’ projects he/she is interested in, regardless
of whether they fit with the organisation’s goals?
3. WRATH…become visibly angry at work when relatively small
mistakes are made?
4. GLUTTONY…get heavily involved in the details of all the
projects he/she is responsible for?
5. PRIDE…seek out recognition and plaudits for what he/she has
achieved?
6. ENVY…try to take credit for the good work of others?
7. SLOTH…organise things for his/her own convenience, rather
than taking care of the needs and interests of others?
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
30. In summary…
What employees need What they often get
• Give your people • Confusing or unclear
important work to do objectives
• Provide them with • Micro-management and
space meddling
• Provide support when • Lack of information, lack
it is needed of concern
• Given people • Limited or no feedback
recognition & praise
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
31. Google’s Rules for Good Management
1. Be a good coach
2. Empower your team and don't micromanage
3. Express interest in team members' success and personal
well-being
4. Don't be a sissy: Be productive and results-oriented
5. Be a good communicator and listen to your team
6. Help your employees with career development
7. Have a clear vision and strategy for the team
8. Have key technical skills so you can help advise the team.
(Google’s Quest to Build a Better Boss, Adam Bryant, New York Times, March 12th)
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
32. Why is there such an enormous gulf
between the rhetoric and the reality?
1. Managing well is harder than it seems
2. Competing priorities and limited time
3. Good management requires non-intuitive
behaviour
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
33. So how can we improve the quality of
management in our companies?
Learn how to
see the world
through the
eyes of our
employees
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
34. Marketing Management
1. Get to know your 1. Get to know your
customers properly employees properly
2. Deliver on the 2. Deliver on the
customer employee
experience experience
3. Turn your 3. Turn your
customers into employees into
promoters promoters
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
35. 1. Get to know your employees properly
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
36. Cutting through the hierarchy: How do
you get closer to the front line?
• Skip-level meetings
• Web-enabled chat and discussion forums
• Front-line work
• “Smokers corner”
• Reverse mentoring
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
37. 2. Deliver on the employee experience
• Give the “service” mentality
some teeth
– HCL’s Smart Service Desk
– HCL’s open 360 feedback
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
38. 3. Turn your employees into promoters
Net Promoter Score: How likely is it that you
would recommend this company to a friend or
colleague?
Not at all Extremely
likely likely
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Detractor Neutral Promoter
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
39. The “Net Management Promoter Score”
How likely is it that you would recommend your line
manager to a colleague as someone they should work
for in the future? (1=not at all likely, 10=extremely
likely)
Detractor Neutral Promoter
87 people 60 people 55 people
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
40. A top quality boss is the best single
predictor of employee engagement
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
42. A new management style
Hypothesis: A greater emphasis on ‘coaching’ will
increase the effectiveness of my team
Before After
Traditional style Supervisor spends 5 hours
of supervision more per week providing
of team feedback and coaching team
Intervention: Supervisor has 5 hours Result: Team members
per week freed up (fewer meetings) more engaged, significant
increase in cross-selling
Team are asked to look for new ways of
from lower performers
increasing cross-selling
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011
43. Principles of Experimentation
1. Focus on causes, not symptoms.
2. Make your hypotheses explicit.
3. Limit the scope of your experiment.
4. Run the new in parallel with the old.
5. Start at home.
6. Use volunteers, if possible.
7. Iterate.
Copyright Julian Birkinshaw 2011