Reclaim Your Job
Translating energy and ability into initiative proves as the most practical managerial success determinant. Failure to identify the significance of belief in sufficiency of personal ability leads to apportioning of blame to other factors such as inadequacy of resources. Prominent reasons for lack of success take various shapes of excuses while the main problem remains in control of initiative and discretion.
In other instances, company objectives may compel managers to feel pressure from their bosses. Fears of personal achievement against a backdrop of demands from company objectives define the confusion that managers must resolve to produce results. Bruch and Ghoshal (1) capture several management failures and propose actionable approaches as discussed in this discourse.
A few additions form part of this discussion in the form of contributions on the emerging views. Vital lessons recommended for the resolution of the confusion manifest clearly, including management of demands, generation of resources and employing alternatives.
Management of Demands
As Bruch and Ghoshal (2) observed, the onus of internalization of the demands falls to the manager in terms of managing daily tasks. Failure to quantify the demand function of the job translates into difficulty in introducing significant actions. Definition the job perhaps entails personal perception of the magnitude of demands in order to employ desired skills and resilience.
Strategy formulation depends on the awareness of the tasks involved in the job, which underscores the need of demand management. Commonest demand tackling approach involves prioritization against timelines, where crucial tasks appear ahead of others. Apparently, lack of task prioritization in various jobs illustrates the confusion mentioned in this discussion.
Managers find busy schedules within tight deadlines, which make it impractical to respond to every stakeholder’s demand. Demand management with clear timelines and delegation of duties distributes the burden of burnouts.
In view of Spungin’s case, mismanagement of demands emerges from handling of several tasks without consideration of the impact that the overall competitiveness score produces. Bruch and Ghoshal (3) recommend developing a vision within the confinements of time and task load.
Assessing the practicality of handling more tasks than previously held at McKinsey would facilitate the manager’s decision in terms of managing the demand. Appropriate vision in terms of action must take both short and long-term perspectives (Wheatley 12).
Alternatively, personal interests must take the backseat in the determination of which tasks to undertake. Time management against the priority scale and effective delegation of duties facilitates the achievement of a broader scope of success.
Strategic management drives prioritization of needs and resources in order for investment to give returns. In view of the magnitude of each priority, effective quantification must allocate crucial items ahead of those with a secondary importance. Demand management in terms of resources and time must enable the manager to shift focus into areas that bear most importance.
Overall outcomes of flawless need prioritization translate into less effort and cost against competence and profitability. Reduction of cost and maximization of profits must inevitably inform managers of the next step to take in managerial decision-making processes. Strategic approaches include task delegation, resource allocation, and opportunity exploration (Jacobs 83).
Developing Resources
Bruch and Ghoshal (3) observe that the other frustrating phenomenon for managers entails inadequacy of resources. Seemingly, every organization will give an account of shortage in resources at any instance, thereby hindering successful operations. Managers must operate within budgetary allocations handed down from their seniors, eventually constraining them to the insufficiency therein.
Traditionally, managers ought not to incur costs that the organization cannot finance. Most operation inefficiencies relating to resource restriction develop deep-rooted “can’t do” attitude. The natural aspect of resource limitation exposes every organization to the difficulties associated with related inadequacies.
Successful managers must prioritize their actions against the budgetary constraints, which could translate into difficulty in decision-making. Strategic approaches in managing resource inadequacy target reduction of excesses and maximizing untapped potential.
Resource constraints emerged in Sattelberger’s experience with resource shock after shifting from Daimler-Benz to Lufthansa (Bruch and Ghoshal 3). Strict operational cost cutting approaches in force when Sattelberger arrived and human resource functionalities appeared overly protective to him.
Management of financial and human resources affect profit margins by a huge element since their mismanagement directly reduces profitability. Identification of loopholes in management of resources and quantification of the constraints facilitate the prioritization of desirable actions. Sattelberger generated an independent idea outside the traditional airline business that Lufthansa undertakes.
Introduction of a university to back the revolution of effective management in the company took an ambitious yet radical initiative. Elimination of the perception boundaries referred to as “must-haves” translated into the initial resource definition. The imaginary blueprint in the management reorganization that Sattelberger introduced included transformation into the human resource department.
The elimination of wasteful practices facilitated the strategic reinvention of Lufthansa’s objectives. In rolling out radical changes, resistance may frustrate various stakeholders with a pessimistic view on such rapid ambition. Gradual implementation coupled with constant assurances to stakeholders provided a safety shield for Sattelberger to implement resource redeployment.
After the creation of a blueprint, its implementation starting with the human resource invigoration took shape. Internal capacity building among existing managers proved successful under the project named Explorer 21 (Bruch and Ghoshal 4). Spreading the management strength initiative to new management entrants named ProTeam ensured continuity of effectiveness of human resource management culture.
Various strategic approaches in human resource management recognize the importance of people in the organization. Implementing suitable and responsive human resource management approaches facilitates conversion of human impediments into profitability. Handling of other resources as secondary factors enables the human factor to take the center stage in the organization (Kouzes and Posner 12).
Teamwork providing the necessary impetus to management and junior staff proves as the most effective tool in the introduction of efficiency. Gradual change introduction in an organization facilitates seamless integration of the new operation procedures without resistance.
Continued research in operations demonstrates the willingness of the modern organizations to employ informed techniques of resource investment and deployment.
Exploiting Alternatives
Managers find it difficult to identify the most effective route to take in running organizations partly due to lack of actionable alternatives. Introduction of different approaches in operations provides a difficult array of decisions to make leading to uncertainties. Most managers remain adamant to explore alternatives due to change uncertainties that potentially, may result in poorer conditions than previously experienced.
In such a confusing state, valuable approaches never come to fruition due to lack of action. Confidence that the conceived ideas hold promise to better results stands in the way of opportunities and success.
Recognizing alternatives provides the initial step in taking up opportunities beyond current operations level. Exploiting such alternatives represents the next important step that managers must take in order to remain competitive when what they have failed to give results (Bruch and Ghoshal 2).
In the case of Dan Anderson at Conoco-Philips, possessing a broad perception of the oil market in Finland presented the company with vast identifiable opportunity pool. Anderson got an impressive welcome, including an insider’s look from his mentor, who served at Conoco as a managing director. Such level of confidence enabled him to settle down quickly and assume initiatives to explore untapped potential by the company.
Orientating a novice may require extra prior interaction in order to facilitate overcoming inherent fears. The success achieved on the first assignment depends on the perceived welcome, which seemingly arrived at the right time for Anderson. Possession of alternatives for the new manager with impressive confidence levels produced success for Anderson having explored different approaches in his task.
Assessing initial action plan to unsuccessful results landed Anderson into a safer ground since he conceived alternatives that fit in the company’s objectives. Optimism in worst-case scenarios facilitated Anderson’s design for a solution when everyone else backed off.
Resilience facilitated clear identification of opportunity, for instance realizing that the contractor bore the responsibility of implementing the cleanup (Bruch and Ghoshal 5). The case represents resilience backed by a willingness to explore different plans when one failed.
In view of the next phase of remaining competitive, the corporate world will increasingly find innovation as the missing link to profitability. Several alternatives creatively designed to fit in the original objective will find their way into business. Common strategies that support this approach include the Blue-Ocean concept that ensures success as long as new opportunities sustain continuity (Kim and Mauborgne 219).
Many organizations finding innovative alternatives to conduct operations find a ready market that provides fewer obstacles than without exploring the alternative.
Works Cited
Bruch, Heike, and Ghoshal Sumantra. “Reclaim Your Job.” Harvard Business Review. Harvard Business Review, March 2004. Web.
Jacobs, Robert W. Real Time Strategic Change, San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler, 1994. Print.
Kim, Chan, and Mauborgne Renee. Blue Ocean Strategy: How to Create Uncontested Market Space and Make the Competition Irrelevant, Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Publishing, 2005. Print.
Kouzes, James, and Posner Barry. The Leadership Challenge: How to Keep Getting Extraordinary Things Done in Organizations, New York: Jossey-Bass Publishers, 1995. Print.
Wheatley, Margaret. Leadership and the New Science: Discovering in a Chaotic World, San Francisco, CA: Barrett-Koehler Publishers, Inc., 2006. Print.