The Difference Between Management and Leadership


By M. Glenn Shepard


A 27 year old manager named Justin who attended my seminar at the University of Wisconsin asked why his employees didn’t accept his authority, even though he had been given the official title of General Manager. He was taking over a trucking company from his father and thought it was because of his age, or the fact that his father founded the company. It was neither. Bill Ford’s great grandfather, Henry Ford, founded Ford Motor Company. Yet Bill’s employee’s accept his authority regardless of his family ties. Bill Gates was a teenager when he co-founded Microsoft, yet his employees accepted his authority regardless of his age.

Justin’s employees didn’t accept his authority because while he was a manager, he had not yet become a leader. The title of management can be given to anyone regardless of qualification, and employees have no choice but to comply with a manager’s orders if they wish to continue receiving a paycheck. People will comply with a manager, but will only commit to a leader. The title of leader, however, cannot be given. It only comes once employees respect the manager, and respect cannot be given or ordered. It must be earned.

Former U.S. Secretary of State Colon Powell characterized it best when he said, “Leadership is the art of getting people to accomplish more than the science of management says is possible”. When managers face the unpleasant task of firing an employee who they personally like but whose performance just doesn’t cut it, we often try to ease the discomfort by telling the employee “This isn’t personal. It’s just business”. Leadership, however, is very personal. As John Maxwell put it in his best selling book, “The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership”, people must buy into the leader before they’ll buy into the leader’s mission. Steve Jobs is a perfect example of this. After co-founding Apple Computer when he was only a teenager, he was fired as CEO at age 30. When he was brought back in as CEO in 1997, he began to lead the company in new directions. He was not, however, immediately recognized as the visionary leader that he is today. In fact, some thought he had lost it altogether because of some seemingly bizarre decisions he made. He settled a lawsuit with Microsoft because he realized that Apple, which was losing market share rapidly, could not fight the 800 pound gorilla that Microsoft had become. He realized that if you can’t beat them, you join them. He then went on to reinvent every product Apple offered, and reinvigorated their employees with a leader’s most powerful tool - momentum. He got his employees so accustomed to change that they expect it now. Reinventing over and over again, such as with the Apple iPod, iPod Mini, Nano, Shuffle, and iPod Video, has become a way of life for his company. Steve Jobs could walk into Apple tomorrow and announce that they are going to stop making MP3 players and computers, and start making toaster ovens. No one would think he’d lost it this time. Instead, his employees would collectively say, “Lead the way, boss. Show us how to make the best toaster ovens anyone has ever made”.

Glenn Shepard is a management consultant living in Nashville, Tennessee. He is the author of “How to Manage Problem Employees” and publishes a weekly newsletter to help managers get the most from their teams. Get his free mini course “How to Move from Manager to Leader”” now at http://www.free-minicourses.com


More Resources

Unable to open RSS Feed $XMLfilename with error HTTP ERROR: 404, exiting

More Management Information:

Related Articles

What is the Most Difficult Part of an Improvement Program?
Answer: Starting one.Most of us realize that there is probably a better way to perform certain functions or tasks, but improvement programs seem to take second seat to getting the product out the door.
Innovation Management and Brainstorming Management - why people hate to brainstorm!
Creativity can be defined as problem identification and idea generation whilst innovation can be defined as idea selection, development and commercialisation.There are distinct processes that enhance problem identification and idea generation and, similarly, distinct processes that enhance idea selection, development and commercialisation.
Growing Profits is Easy!
Everyone involved in running a business from the smallest start-up to a major corporate dreams about how to achieve sustained profitable growth. I'm a great believer that business is simple - it's only us human beings that make it complex.
Problem-Solving Success Tip: Whatever You Do, Do It on Purpose
Decision-making shows up throughout the problem-solving process. The decisions may be difficult or unpopular, so it's very tempting to ignore some of them.
Managing Yo-Yo Style
Does being managed by others smack more of "Survivor" than Stephen Covey for you? Could there BE any more management styles out there-have you gotten to experience all of them yet? And what kind of manager are you-or should you try to be?If you're reading this, you're probably familiar with too many types of management and leadership styles-more flavors than months, for the most part. On the leadership, not so much.
Downsizing in Organisations - The Real Truth
I've met and worked with many people in all sectors of the business world and found that the majority of managers and team leaders are spending too much of their time on basic administrative tasks. Tasks for which they have had no training in.
Developing Your Mission
"The best Leader is one who knows how to pick good people to do what he or she wants done and self-restraint enough to keep from meddling with them while they do it." - Heidi Richards -Mission statements describe the purpose of an organization or a sub-group of it.
Improved Communication to Improve Results
Facilitating good communication can make the difference between a well oiled, effective team and disorganization and ambiguity. By following the tips below, you, the supervisor, can take steps toward improving communication with your employees:1.
Performance Appraisals: Nightmares or Sweet Dreams
Some managers think of performance appraisal meetings and recollections of torn Achilles' heels or root canals immediately surface. They're sort of "been there, don't want to go again" situations.
Create Your Methodology Based on a Standard Framework - Part One
OK. So you have decided that your organization has to improve the way in which it works.
Loyalty, Motivation And Work-Life Balance
Managers who aren't loyal to their people can't expect loyalty in return. Companies that complain about employee loyalty have usually done nothing to earn loyalty, often routinely lying to employees, demanding sacrifices that are never rewarded, shunting them aside and casting them off in the name of good business.
A Rare Leadership Skill: Dealing With People Who Want Out By Offering Crowns For Convoy
As a leader, you'll inevitably be faced with people wanting to leave your team or organization. Dealing with the challenge is critical for your leadership success.
Conquering the Number One Problem in Business--Poor Communication
The Number One problem in business is poor communication: between coworkers, with clients, across functional areas, up the food chain. When I ask anyone I meet "What's the one thing that causes problems in your company?" the answer is always Communication: poor communication in relaying instructions, miscommunication because of irresponsible delivery, too little information when conveying changes in policies or procedures, not enough exchange of information when relaying new concepts or ideas.
Delegation: When to Delegate, Who to Delegate to
There are some very simple guides for delegation.Most people delegate based on not wanting to do something.
The 5 Obsessions of a Passionate Employee
A recent report entitled "How Google Grows?and Grows?and Grows" stated that the 650 people that work at Google are the most passionate bunch of geeks in the high tech industry. Google was also recently called the fastest growing company in history.
Getting Software Developed for Your Business
At some point, your business is going to need to have some software development. Maybe your business is small, but existing software doesn't fit your needs.
What Every HR Manager Should Know About Hiring Productive Employees
The characteristics of job applicants have a strong influence on whether or not they get hired. Their characteristics also indicate the level of their productivity.
A Renewed View of the Modern Business Culture
Life can sometimes be unexciting if not refreshed by the will to create according to one's own conscience and freedom. Often, the power of passion fuses into unexciting or appealing activities.
Stop Going to Meetings - 10 Questions to Ask Before Attending a Meeting - Get More Productive
We get invited to attend so many "meetings" but do we need to attend them all? Use these 10 questions to assess if you should attend that next meeting invitation.What is the agenda of the meeting? Don't attend a meeting without a clear agenda otherwise you are wasting time.
Tales from the Corporate Frontlines: Human Resources at Work
This article relates to the Human Resource Functions competency, commonly evaluated in employee satisfaction surveys. It reflects one employee's satisfaction with the manner in which her HR department carried out their work.