[Leadership] Management vs Leadership

I have a mentor that I worked for at a VERY large company and I was very fortunate to work from him. At that point in his career, some would say he was a mid-level manager. I disagree whole heartedly. He was a leader. He cared deeply about the growth of the people that directly reported to him and saw it as his responsibility to help them achieve their full potential. My first day on the job he said “Mike, I don’t own you. I own the job you fill but I will never claim to own you or your career. If you ever see a better place for yourself, inside or outside the company, go for it and if I can help you I will, you have my word. You are in charge of your own future, not me.” His advice was twofold, first he cared about me and my career not just the job I did and second he wanted to break down any false barriers I had for myself and my career. I later found out that he is an awesome Christian which explained a lot in his “management” style.

In my experience, management and leadership are two entirely different things. One is very tactical and other very strategic but in the end its really about mind set. Let me explain.

I often read and hear people say that management is strategic. I disagree. Management is very tactical and handles the day to day tasks or the things that are eminent. Management has to do with getting things done that needed to be done yesterday. Good managers are good fire fighters and can be excellent customer champions but may not have time to think about the years to come.

Managers:

• Are short term/goal oriented
• Care more about the future of the organization
• Have reports
• Are often transactional (i.e. no interaction beyond what is required to get the job done)
• Are often very logical
• Often consume mass amounts of resources (i.e. time, talent, treasure)
• Are predominantly reactive
• Inspire turnover due to pushing people to hard
• Make decisions without consultation.
  
• Spread the blame to their team
  

Leadership, as I have come to experience it, is very strategically and not very tactical. Leadership has to do with growing people, programs and organizations for the future and not for the today. Leadership is how we inspire the people that work for us and around us (and above us). Anyone can be a leader and we often are at some point even if we do not realize it. There are plenty of tag lines that go with this such as “you don’t need a title to be a leader”. For example, leadership can be as simple as volunteering at a women’s shelter. While leadership may not fix the problems of today, it makes impacts and lays the foundation for the future. Leadership is often not about fixing the problem but about planting the seed.

Leaders:

• Are long term/goal oriented
• Care more about the future of the people around them
• Always grow people, programs and organizations
• Have followers
• Are relational (i.e. they focus on building a relationship with those around them)
• Are sensitive to feelings and emotions
• Usually consume mass amounts of resources (i.e. time, talent, treasure)
• Are predominantly proactive
• Inspire loyalty
• Own decisions once they are made
• Take the blame for their team