What should be the leader? Profession Secrets
I will say right away - “I don’t open America,” just as I don’t “reinvent the wheel.” The article is based on the Hersi-Blanchard model of situational leadership. The model itself is largely changed in the application to the management of IT teams in our country and is supported by the practical experience of managing teams in Microsoft Rus and in their own business.
Choosing between “academic” and “popular” presentation styles I chose “academic”. All the same, talking about serious things. So if this topic is not super-relevant to you right now - look at the diagrams, there are enough of them to understand the idea. The rest is for a fairly narrow audience.
Why do I think that the IT team requires other management techniques? Funny fact - for at least 5 years at many seminars I asked the question: “Who thinks that the chosen IT industry is the most successful investment of your strength and skills in terms of salary? That is, if you worked with the same diligence at a real estate agency, McDonalds, gas station or any other industry, would you get less money? ”According to approximate estimates, about 10 thousand people interviewed raised 15-20 people. That is, the main incentive to work according to the generally accepted model is that wages in our industry are not so significant. This is just one example; there are many other differences in the motivation of an IT specialist from an employee, for example, in a sales department. Therefore, the leadership style should be different, although it is obvious that “two hands, two heads” - so it’s not necessary to completely cross out the traditional styles of work.
An interesting fact - the three most profitable businesses as far as I know - selling flowers, drugs, weapons (in descending order).
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When I first encountered the management team - one of the key questions was: "How to behave?". Do we need to keep administrative barriers (as recommended in the comments to the article “ Effective team building ”) or not? Is it necessary to teach a new employee using the “Gerasim method” or carefully and scrupulously to teach him everything that is necessary? Set only the most important goals and encourage initiative or engage in micromanagement with a perfectionism bias? Need to focus on leadership or reports? etc.
The discovery was a model of situational leadership that gave a clear and understandable answer: "The leadership style is according to the situation ....". Depending on the level of training applied to the position held by your subordinate. (Historical background - in general, apart from Hersi-Blanchard, there are at least 5 models of situational leadership, “holy wars” are still being conducted).
Then which model of behavior when to choose?
The model proposes the division of the level of development into four stages (my translation).
1) Beginner enthusiast. In IT, learning new is very important. Any new work causes a surge of enthusiasm. The first quick successes strengthen it. But very quickly there are “pitfalls”, stopping the work or turning it in a different direction. Here we should also note the lack of comprehensive fundamental training of IT specialists in our industry. So any new direction almost always reveals the lack of certain skills. There are very frequent conflicts with the leadership - “retrogrades, prevent new methods”, “I am an excellent specialist, you don’t know how to set goals,” etc. Characteristics of the stage - high motivation, low level of preparation.
2) Learning realist. The period of initial euphoria has passed. Knowledge did not have time to add. The specialist is depressed due to failures and unfulfilled promises. Many at this stage “break down” - they quit what they have begun, or even staying at the same work, they begin to “pull the bag”.
3) Stable worker. A small percentage of survivors of the past stage gains the necessary knowledge and is able to perform work in a strictly defined framework. And he is very afraid to go beyond these limits, since he still very well remembers the bitterness and humiliation of the previous stage.
4) Guru. Here he is - our ideal worker. Recognized expert Whose advice we ask at the stage of setting the problem. Offering options for improving the quality of the task and reducing the timing of its implementation. The only thing is that at this stage in the period of general incompetence they seldom linger - going up or taking up new technologies ... and becoming again a “novice enthusiast”.
How, then, change leadership style?
1) A novice enthusiast manager. Learning it is useless - there is no understanding of the need for new skills. The main task of the manager is to set clear quantitative goals (I hope to write an article on the SMART concept) and not to prevent losses for business while this “monkey with a grenade” frolics. And, by the way, do not forget that it is such a specialist who can, with a “unfriendly look”, introduce various useful innovations into your business.
2) Learning Realist Manager. Meet, show this model. Explain that failures happen to everyone and start learning. Help with current tasks, to patronize.
3) Mendeger stable employee. Does the specialist start coping? Remove custody. From coaching turn to coaching (the art of asking questions). We ask for advice, but reserve the right to make the final decision. We motivate new approaches and new challenges.
4) Guru manager. We set tasks only for the top level, leaving the right of intermediate decisions to the specialist. We are starting to develop and implement a program of professional and career growth.
I wanted to make the article as brief as possible, many aspects were left behind the scenes. And managing people is not an exact science with the only right decision. If you have questions, ask, we will be happy to discuss.
Choosing between “academic” and “popular” presentation styles I chose “academic”. All the same, talking about serious things. So if this topic is not super-relevant to you right now - look at the diagrams, there are enough of them to understand the idea. The rest is for a fairly narrow audience.
Why do I think that the IT team requires other management techniques? Funny fact - for at least 5 years at many seminars I asked the question: “Who thinks that the chosen IT industry is the most successful investment of your strength and skills in terms of salary? That is, if you worked with the same diligence at a real estate agency, McDonalds, gas station or any other industry, would you get less money? ”According to approximate estimates, about 10 thousand people interviewed raised 15-20 people. That is, the main incentive to work according to the generally accepted model is that wages in our industry are not so significant. This is just one example; there are many other differences in the motivation of an IT specialist from an employee, for example, in a sales department. Therefore, the leadership style should be different, although it is obvious that “two hands, two heads” - so it’s not necessary to completely cross out the traditional styles of work.
An interesting fact - the three most profitable businesses as far as I know - selling flowers, drugs, weapons (in descending order).
')
When I first encountered the management team - one of the key questions was: "How to behave?". Do we need to keep administrative barriers (as recommended in the comments to the article “ Effective team building ”) or not? Is it necessary to teach a new employee using the “Gerasim method” or carefully and scrupulously to teach him everything that is necessary? Set only the most important goals and encourage initiative or engage in micromanagement with a perfectionism bias? Need to focus on leadership or reports? etc.
The discovery was a model of situational leadership that gave a clear and understandable answer: "The leadership style is according to the situation ....". Depending on the level of training applied to the position held by your subordinate. (Historical background - in general, apart from Hersi-Blanchard, there are at least 5 models of situational leadership, “holy wars” are still being conducted).
Then which model of behavior when to choose?
The model proposes the division of the level of development into four stages (my translation).
1) Beginner enthusiast. In IT, learning new is very important. Any new work causes a surge of enthusiasm. The first quick successes strengthen it. But very quickly there are “pitfalls”, stopping the work or turning it in a different direction. Here we should also note the lack of comprehensive fundamental training of IT specialists in our industry. So any new direction almost always reveals the lack of certain skills. There are very frequent conflicts with the leadership - “retrogrades, prevent new methods”, “I am an excellent specialist, you don’t know how to set goals,” etc. Characteristics of the stage - high motivation, low level of preparation.
2) Learning realist. The period of initial euphoria has passed. Knowledge did not have time to add. The specialist is depressed due to failures and unfulfilled promises. Many at this stage “break down” - they quit what they have begun, or even staying at the same work, they begin to “pull the bag”.
3) Stable worker. A small percentage of survivors of the past stage gains the necessary knowledge and is able to perform work in a strictly defined framework. And he is very afraid to go beyond these limits, since he still very well remembers the bitterness and humiliation of the previous stage.
4) Guru. Here he is - our ideal worker. Recognized expert Whose advice we ask at the stage of setting the problem. Offering options for improving the quality of the task and reducing the timing of its implementation. The only thing is that at this stage in the period of general incompetence they seldom linger - going up or taking up new technologies ... and becoming again a “novice enthusiast”.
How, then, change leadership style?
1) A novice enthusiast manager. Learning it is useless - there is no understanding of the need for new skills. The main task of the manager is to set clear quantitative goals (I hope to write an article on the SMART concept) and not to prevent losses for business while this “monkey with a grenade” frolics. And, by the way, do not forget that it is such a specialist who can, with a “unfriendly look”, introduce various useful innovations into your business.
2) Learning Realist Manager. Meet, show this model. Explain that failures happen to everyone and start learning. Help with current tasks, to patronize.
3) Mendeger stable employee. Does the specialist start coping? Remove custody. From coaching turn to coaching (the art of asking questions). We ask for advice, but reserve the right to make the final decision. We motivate new approaches and new challenges.
4) Guru manager. We set tasks only for the top level, leaving the right of intermediate decisions to the specialist. We are starting to develop and implement a program of professional and career growth.
I wanted to make the article as brief as possible, many aspects were left behind the scenes. And managing people is not an exact science with the only right decision. If you have questions, ask, we will be happy to discuss.
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/95803/
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