Management Thinking

Robert Heller discusses how, faced with rising complexity, managers make the situation worse with overly complicated reactions

Whenever an organisation makes changes, they inevitably affect the behaviour patterns of its various stakeholders. But they don't necessarily change its personality.

HR pros might love the phrase "human capital", but most of their colleagues think it's just another piece of jargon which undermines HR's chances of getting the high-level management support it needs.

Do you manage a team or a group? The distinction is an important one, because there's no point in trying to develop a team ethos amongst a group of people who do no real need to work cooperatively together.

It may well be the last thing you want to hear as you're thinking about your holiday, but firms that respond to customers 24/7 are more likely to win business than those that don't.

The credit crunch and economic downturn have caused CEOs to pull back from making bold, imaginative decisions and concentrate instead on the 3Cs: consolidation, communication and customer service.

One thing that is consistent around the world is the need for good managers and management development. In fact a few good management practices could save us from a lot of the trouble the world is in at the moment.

Want to know why so many M&As end in failure? According to a new study, it's because they destroy the leadership continuity in target companies' top management teams. And the damage can last for decades.

Entrepreneurial individuals are often branded as risk takers and mistrusted by major employers. But their imagination and creativity is exactly what modern businesses need.

The context in which people work is of vital importance. That means articulating a concise and relevant purpose which defines the shared tasks of all staff.

Far from being omnipotent, the "boom generation" of business leaders have been caught unawares by the current downturn and are at a loss as to how they'll respond to it.

In a slowing economy, don't be tempted to chain yourself to your desk and work even harder. Management by walking around is more vital than ever.

It's been said that there is more social commentary in science fiction than in any other form of popular writing. And the Hithchiker's Guide to The Galaxy contains an incredible amount of wisdom on the subject of the despairing workplace.

Cutting corners on the fundamentals to save a few dollars in the short-term may end up costing you big time. It's far wiser to budget for known costs rather than risk unknown costs that could wipe you out.

They might make great newspaper copy, but high-profile "celebrity" CEOs brought in to deliver rapid results often have exactly the opposite impact.

We're always hearing that ineffective managers cost billions in lost productivity. But we're also being told that the shortage of managers is the end of business as we know it. So which is it?

Does the perfect boss actually exist? And if they do, what does he or she do that makes them perfect?

HR is still thought of as a "necessary evil" in many organisations. But its hardly a surprise when just a fifth are considered to be any good at what are meant to be their basic tasks.

Middle managers are a much maligned as a breed. But they serve a vital role in keeping deeply distrustful workers and senior management talking to each other.

How could a project as high-profile and important as the opening of Heathrow airport's new Terminal Five have gone so disastrously awry at such a sensitive moment? Robert Heller dissects the fiasco.

What's your Dramatic Difference? What sets you apart from the rest? Don't have one? Well get working on it and raise that bar. Because the chances of achieving success simply by being the same as everyone else are reducing rapidly

Big companies want big products. They want big ideas. They place big bets on a big future. But what they're doing is putting all their eggs in one big basket. Or worse – putting all their faith in just one egg.

Knowing who its customers are is the foundation for any successful organisation. And as the US Federal Aviation Administration has demonstrated, getting this wrong can be disastrous.

No longer just the domain of geeks and teenage boys, the growing popularity of virtual, computer-generated worlds is something businesses should be looking at tapping into.

Every time there's a downturn, organisations seem to become fixated with "business development" in the belief that there's some magical breed of executive who can wave a magic wand and save the business.

Time once again to visit the Corporate Cynic as he takes an in-depth look at the unintended effects of outsourcing.

When you're not experienced, being on the receiving end of a heated conversation can be tough. But verbal challenges can be addressed tactfully and professionally as long as we've thought through a process for how to do it.

The Millennial economy represents the era of the Naked Plutocrat. While their super-fortunes are alleged to be rewards for super-success, they are beginning to resemble a much earlier group of self-servers: the Robber Barons.

The three founders of Allan's company are technically brilliant but just aren't interested in management. Staff turnover is high and the problems are mounting. Charles Helliwell has some ideas how they might be persuaded to change.

Fewer than a quarter of managers mange to create a high-performance culture in their organisation – and four out of 10 actually act as a demotivating influence on their staff.

Forget about juggling work and kids. The biggest challenge for workers over the next decade will be holding down a job while looking after ageing relatives.

Des Dearlove talks to psychologist Howard Gardner about the qualities of thinking that will allow people to survive and prosper in the 21st century, both in work and life generally.

Lean Six Sigma is all very well, but it doesn't take into account intangibles. And ignoring things they can't be measured - like integrity, team spirit, dedication and loyalty - is downright dangerous.

How many managers ever pause to consider whether the numbers are guiding them and their businesses in the right direction? Perhaps their priorities need to balanced more in favour of innovation.

You might be forgiven if you thought it was "harass the boss" week on this blog; after all, this is two posts in a row where I'm about to give management types a hard time. But maybe, just maybe they have it coming!

As a manager, are you aware of what employees are saying about you? If you are, you're in a minority, because most mangers are blind and deaf to what others feel about them.

Sir John Harvey-Jones, who died in January, represented a rare breed. What made him stand out wasn't just his management know-how – it was also the human dimension.

Workplaces are like the weather. They have emotional temperatures. There can be a positive high energy current circulating or a misty gloom. So for bosses, it is particularly important to be a beacon of positive emotions.

With the search for talent such a priority for today's businesses, why is it that so many managers sill have such a negative view of human resources departments? Ross Bentley investigates.

While it seems like the world (or at least, the Internet) has accepted the fact that most managers are incompetent, we shouldn't forget that there are plenty of good ones out there.

Unloved and unappreciated, HR departments regularly come under fire from their management colleagues for failing to deliver. And this week has been no different.

It's not just coming up with a great idea that counts in business. It's how you manage innovation that makes the difference between great performers and also-rans.

If you want to know how an apparently competent manager can preside over the destruction of team morale and productivity and the exodus of their best staff, this true story provides some salutary lessons.

Traditional management theory treats workers like any other input. Get as much out of them as possible and pay them as little as you can get away with. Unfortunately, like so much management theory, it is largely garbage.

The epidemic of bad management is a global one, but whereever it is found, incompetence is marked out by some common traits.

Careful succession planning is critical when those at the helm of a business decide to hand over responsibility to new management. So if you want to boost the value and saleability of your business for the future, start planning for and building the next generation of human resources right now.

Professor Richard D'Aveni has been described as a combination of Henry Kissinger and Sun Tzu. He talks to Stuart Crainer about his work and the challenges posed by emerging economies.

Very few ideas succeed without powerful support. Because powerful people need ideas - and ideas need powerful people to facilitate, legitimise, popularise and even legislate for their adoption.

There are many reasons why complacency occurs. Some people have an aversion to taking risks. Others are frightened of creativity and new ideas because they are unsure of how to deal with them.

The reason so many mergers fail is because managers get overly fixated on financials and technology and forget that M&As involve people, too.

Want a bit of respect from your team and fellow managers? Then you need to stop being all friendly and approachable and get out there and knock a few heads together.

Many corporate leaders are too focused on managing day-to-day crises to see that their organizations have serious underlying corporate health issues which could effect their long-term survival.

Management has always been difficult to classify. Managers and management gurus often disagree as to whether the activity is art or science or craft or discipline, or whether it is inspirational or mathematical.

Burnout is a slow burn – a process, not an event. That's why it can be so difficult to acknowledge that it is affecting you. But when people are viewed simply as functions, burnout can be built into the very structure of an organization.

As Chinese businessmen and women eagerly consume everything that they can learn about American business practices, the Western world should think about what it can learn from China – particularly its more engaged approach to management.

Chindôgu – the Japanese art of the unusual – describes inventions that solve a problem but cause so many new problems that for most people, they are effectively useless. But far from being a joke, we could all benefit from the Chindôgu philosophy.

What can be learned from the multitude of stores about bad bosses that we all read on the web? Well, here's a piece that not only tells a familiar story of bad management but also but explains what the writer gained from dealing with a bad boss.

Why do so many executives seem to develop a growing inability to back their instincts and judgement the higher up the corporate ladder they climb?

Professor Mark H. Moore talks to Des Dearlove about public value and citizenship and poses some challenging questions about the way we view public services

It's all too easy to get it wrong when hiring a consultant and be left with a bad taste in the mouth. So here are some suggestions that may prove helpful the next time you need to hire outside help.