Is Jason Lamb a good manager
Does it matter how you look and dress for work? Does an untidy office and desk indicate a disorganised and chaotic mind ? Do dirty cups and overflowing wast bins say lazy and slapdash? Does a disheveled appearance, five days stubble and garlic breath make you any less effective ? We are told it does. Then again they say don’t judge a book by its cover! There is evidence that interview candidates are judged by their appearance. But we are not talking about Interview candidates.
There was the famous t.v. presenter who didn’t wear trousers when he read the evening news. Sat at a news desk dressed in what looked like a smart suit but in fact wearing a pair of jeans hidden from the camera. Did his colleagues think him any less professional?
I am told by a hybrid worker that when working from home and on an early morning video conference call it’s not uncommon for an individual just to throw a top on over their pyjamas. I worked with an NHS Hospital CEO who had a reputation as being very smart. The first time I visited her office I was shocked at the scene that greeted me. Her desk and floor was covered in tottering towers of files. To sit on the only chair in the office ,other than the one she was sitting on, I had to remove a pile of files! After qualifying I worked for an inspiring office based team manager who went on to be a Director. He always wore jeans, a leather jacket and sandels with soaks! His only concession to the dress code was to keep a tie and jacket hung up on the office door for when he attended board meetings or meet the chair. The head of a unit that worked with young offenders in the community dressed in ,”street” clothes so I was surprised to see him one morning in a suit and tie. He explained he had just come from court. His view was that if the judge took his professional views more seriously if he wore a suit then to do the best for his client he would. Jason Lamb on the other hand is a manager of a team of MI5 out casts based in a dilapidated building down a dark and narrow ally. He looks and apparently smells like a rough sleeper, a chain smoker and heavy drinker he often sleeps in his office. He may not be a sharp dresser like his bosses at HQ but he has a razor sharp mind and in the complex game of chests played by the secret service he always seems comes out ahead. He is very harsh with his team and never misses an opportunity to remind individuals that they are screwups. At the same time he is ferociously protective of his team. Is Jason Lamb a good manager? If you judge him by his results rather than his appearance then yes. As someone to work for he is difficult and irascible but you need to bear in mind working at Slough House isn’t supposed to be pleasant.
Blair McPherson former Director author and blogger www.blairmcpherson.co.uk
