Challenges facing Management
slow and methodical decision maker, more a 'doer' who has to react rapidly to problems as they arise, 'think on his feet', take decisions in situ and develop a preference for concrete activities.”
The principle work of management is to get others to do the organisations work. The manager's principle actions involve either gathering information or getting others to do something. The notion of the manager sitting in their office, reflecting on the nature of the organisation and producing a detailed plan of what to do is a myth that has very little to do with how managers spend their day.
Managers do make decisions. They do think about their organisation. They do put together complex information. They do form plans and goals. They do get others to do things for them. Sometimes, they even sit in their office (although this is rare depending on the function of the manager). These principle activities of management -- Mintzberg [3] described them as informational, interpersonal and decisional roles -- are done by the manager, in the context of fragmentation, interruption, and reaction. They are done in the interpersonal processes -- rather than separate from them.
As well as having many possible roles within organizations, managers can also be shown to have ‘styles’ traits, which engender them to show a certain way in dealing with problems and people. The style of management and how it can assist or hold back companies and work colleagues has been studied over many years, with hundreds of different styles being highlighted.
In the appendices [A], I have put together a short list, which I discovered while searching the Internet, with short descriptions of how these work.