This post is not based on research. This is me thinking aloud about some of the issues I brought up in recent posts on management and leadership. I invite you to think aloud with me in the comments.

Research is important. People are doing research (maybe not exactly in our sector but there is research going on) and more is needed. However, we don’t need to wait until the research is done to start addressing the problems in our own small ways.

I’m interested in the shape of the problem. In learning by trying things out. In having a sense of what the issues are so that when we see opportunities to do a small thing that might make a difference we do it.

Let’s start with negative images of management

Unfortunately, one of the reasons good people don’t apply for management/leadership positions or actively seek out the experiences that will move them towards those positions is because they don’t want to be “that guy” — the Option A manager.

They don’t want to be the incompetent manager who misuses his power to make stupid decisions and blame others. The guy people complain about all the time.

“That guy” may be a straw man. That doesn’t stop this image from preventing people who might make great managers on the Option B model from putting themselves forward.

If your image of a manager is someone who is interested in the power and control and you are not interested in power and control, why would you even consider management as an option?

How do we talk about management in ways that make it seem like a desirable option? How do we talk about management in a way that enables people who have the skills to be a good Option B manager to imagine themselves in that position?

Where can change happen?

I am well aware of the structural issues here. Heck, I’m a sociologist. Structure is like oxygen for people like me.

Partly because of that, I bristle at discussions of this issue (or any issue) that only look at individual solutions.

That said, I am also frustrated by the temptation of not doing anything because the scope of the necessary change is so large. This can turn a wonderful critique of the current situation into whining.

What action can we take? What are the small steps any of us can take? What groups are we already part of that can begin to change some of those structures?

First, we can start talking about management positively. We can be clearer in our criticisms of bad management, careful to identify the real problem or work towards the identification of the real problem. We can talk about good management.

Second, we can ask questions and suggest different ways of doing things. Maybe that committee you serve on won’t change how it does things as a result of your suggestion but that doesn’t mean that it isn’t worth making it and making a strong case for it.

Change is slow. Often painfully so. But water dripping on a stone will eventually wear away the stone. The effect of one drop is almost nothing but you need each drop to get the cumulative effect.

Please use the comments to suggest how we can address this issue and to suggest related issues to explore.