Why Managers Succeed or Fail

There are obviously many reasons why managers succeed or fail. When talking to managers or to students in graduate programs, I usually ask two questions: (1) How would you describe your current manager? and (2) Do you emulate or would you like to emulate your current manager or any other manager that you know? I'm not suggesting that they be clones of their managers, I'm simply attempting to determine what kind of managers they work with. Seldom do I receive positive responses. Effectiveness and efficiency in meeting the organization's objectives do not appear to be a high priority with their managers. Too few managers have the courage to raise the difficult questions—those issues where executive preferences dominate but are inconsistent with the organization's objectives. So organizations have some serious problems to resolve if they're seeking proactive managers who bring out the best in their people.

Your success not only depends on your own efforts but on the support you receive from your manager and executive management. Regardless of how proactive you may be you need an environment that will support your efforts. Success or failure can be personal, organizational, or beyond organizational control.

Personal

When you meet the requirements of the five components of managing competence (knowledge, skills, attitudes, personal characteristics, and experience) and your staff meets its professional requirements, success of the department is almost guaranteed. Success requires that there be a balance of these five components. If you do not meet the requirements of the five components of managing competence your chances of failure increase significantly. Highly motivated departments are bound to be successful because the energy and drive to succeed is always present. They're the group that sees the glass as half full. You need to recognize that you set the course and through your personal actions send the message that determines whether every issue is a tragedy or an opportunity. Of course you can suffer setbacks when serious problems arise within your department, but managing under such circumstances is the test of your competence.

If the time comes when you become disappointed with your own performance and cannot influence what goes on in the organization, your success and the organization's success will be limited. Your success depends on the efforts of many other people both above and below your level.

Organizational

Managers succeed or fail depending on how the organization manages its affairs. Organizations fulfill their purposes and objectives through developing workable strategies and implementing operational plans. Under these circumstances success is managed. Problems and opportunities are anticipated and solutions are developed in a timely manner. But problems can arise when executive management makes demands but does not provide the resources and infrastructure to meet the demands.

Organizational failure also stems from appointing managers to upper-level positions who never should have been appointed. They may have had the educational credentials but the track record of accomplishments is rather thin. Academic records after five years of experience have little if any significance. Managerial appointments cannot be made from reading the last five performance appraisals. New appointees need to be a known quantity to those making the appointment and the track record is what's important. Organizations fail when the incompetent manage the organization's business. As a manager your opportunities are limited if upper management doesn't perform.

Beyond Organizational Control

Recent events in the global economy demonstrate how careers in managing and in the professions can be either put on hold or destroyed. After years of economic growth, introduction of innovative products and practices, and the birth and death of the dot-coms, the United States faced the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City, the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., and on American Airlines Flight 93. Normalizing the impact of such incidents goes beyond organizational control. At the same time these incidents need to be kept in perspective. Many organizations were facing financial difficulties that were certainly exacerbated after September 11. Under these circumstances managers require not only added dedication but also the courage to make those difficult decisions. Your success or failure under such circumstances depends on what you bring to the managing table.