There are two types of senior manager those who believe success is
built on long hours, dedication and hard work ,sacrifice and those who
think the best results come when people feel valued, empowered and
trusted, fulfilment.
I’m not saying there can not be a mix and max but generally
senior managers lean one way or the other. Some of the most successful
are the most extreme. The ketchup wars are simply a graphic example of
this in football. Diet is important in professional sport for some
coaches this means that the sacrifices you must make to be successful
include giving up things you enjoy eating that are not part of your
strict diet. Other coaches have a more relaxed approach, the
occasional treat does no harm and if it makes you happy it’s probably
good for your performance. We have recently seen extreme examples of
this with a new manager joining a top club and banning tomato ketchup
from the players canteen and by implication their diet. This is the
authoritarian manager who believes success is based on dedication and
hard work. The type of manager who says, “ you won’t like me, you
won’t like my methods, but they work”. They demand absolute
unquestioning loyalty.
However this approach is out of step with today’s concerns for
employees mental well-being. It smacks of bullying and it stifles the
creativity and innovation that comes with empowering and trusting
employees. Innovation, creativity and flexibility are the
characteristics of an agile organisation able to respond quickly and
smoothly to changes in the external environment. The empowering
manager on taking over from their authoritarian predecessor
symbolically puts the ketchup back on the table!
Whilst the no ketchup brigade can point to a track record of success
it is often short term success as individuals and teams burnout under
the constant pressure to over achieve and the straightjacket of non
questioning adherence. There are plenty of examples of this in sport
where bright young tennis stars have burnt themselves out whilst still
young and complaints of bullying in swimming, cycling and gymnastics
by winning coaches that leave athletes emotionally scared and
wondering if the price they paid for success was too high. Like wise
in football the three year rule is well recognised. A team is driven
to greater and greater achievements but only by greater and greater
effort where apron exhaustion, mental and emotional, takes it’s toll
with a dramatic drop off in performance.
The Ketchup Wars are a proxy for different management philosophies
and styles and it looks like post pandemic the ketchup will be back on
the table.
Blair Mcpherson www.blairmcpherson.co.uk