Managing

Henry Mintzberg has done it again. As a management professor myself, over the years I have felt his influence on me in two respects: what I teach and how I teach it. In relation to the latter, his insights into the power of reflective thinking - most extensively outlined in Managers, Not MBAs - are profound. This is a book which ought to be ready by every professor of management - and twice by every business school dean. His latest book is also of value not only to those who manage but to those who engage with others in learning about it. Mintzberg has the unusual ability to distil things to their essence, while avoiding simplistic solutions. If you buy just one book about management this year, make it this one.

Thirty-five years ago (today) I hooked on with a company (Enterprise Rent-a-Car) as a "Management Trainee", having no idea where that would eventually lead me. As I rose up the ranks, I eventually became a successful General Manager, made a lot of dough, and was given the golden parachute out the door after a nice 26 year run. When I retired (on 010101), I felt like I was a pretty good manager. After reading Henry Mintzberg's remarkable study into the complex world of "management", I now realize that I may have been good at what I did, but I most certainly could've been a little better. It's a humbling revelation; but I can live with that. The truth is, most hot shot managers (at any level) could stand to read this book---the definitive book on management that I've ever read; from one of the great management gurus to come along since Peter Drucker. Effective management is a lot more complex than I originally thought; although a lot of the subtle nuances came easily to me; still, I never gave a lot of the skills required much thought, until now. Mintzberg breaks down the process into three distinct categories---information, people & action---and you'd better be on top of your game in all three to be a truly effective head honcho. I've read hundreds of books on the subject, but this one with the very simple title, is quite possibly the most relevent one of the bunch. For anyone in any management capacity in any field, this is a vital book to digest. It well help you understand what it takes to really know the key ingredients in becoming a successful manager; actually, a highly successful manager.

Every manager and every management student should read this book. Mintzberg explains how management is like typing - many people perform each but few are professionals at either.

As always, Mintzberg never fails to deliver something useful and fascinating, even when it is an update of an earlier body of work. I repeat what I've said about some of his other books: it doesn't matter whether you think him right or wrong, spot-on or off-beam, fanciful or otherwise, you always come away from his books knowing something more than you did before, knowing that your understanding of the world is a little richer. Even those matters you may not agree with set you thinking about things. Notaby, I've come to appreciate that Mintzberg uses a particular style and a particular approach in all his work. If you squint and turn a very abstract eye to what he does, his earlier work on organisations ("Structure in Fives"), apart from the subject matter of course, is identical to his new book "Management". All the books in between are an elaboration of these two seminal works and the method he uses to construct them. Of course, this is my view only and why I chose the title of this review as "Essentially Mintzberg". How so? Well, first of all, he understands that when there are many perspectives about a particular topic (say, "organisations", or perhaps "management") then the different perspectives reflect a hidden (but mostly not so hidden) dynamic at work. He seeks the attributes which make up his topic which drive the different perspectives by starting from the empirical position of observing what is, rather than trying to opine about what should be. This is the analytical side of the house which most authors either don't get beyond or which most authors enter without any empirical evidence to support their analysis except "empirical intuition" perhaps. Once he has used the wealth of his knowledge and experience to find key attributes, he then starts doing what most don't: checking his analysis by synthesising the component attributes he has found and reconstructing the various perspectives that abound. This method introduces a particular useful artefact, it helps identify the forces which drive the dynamic at work. The end result is the many diagrams which Mintzberg artistically introduces to visualize the abstract forces at work. He effectively shows how all the different perspectives come from a single underlying blob of ideas and that one's location in that blob (reflected in where you are in the real world) is (and must be) constantly changing. The thing Mintzberg doesn't do is tell you why those attributes or forces exist and why they create the dynamic they do. What he does, however, is give you a very good start to discovering for yourself why things are as Mintzberg describes. It's a bit hard to discover why, if you don't even know how to properly describe the what you are talking about. Mintzberg is the master of the what. To be fair, Mintzberg does opine as to why things are so. For example, the whole basis for observing what Mintzberg does in "Management" relates in major part to "bounded rationality" in my v

Mintzberg presents the most comprehensive and descriptive model of management functions I have seen. His model describes three planes that represent where managing takes place. The planes are the information plane, the people plane and the action plane. I will not describe his model in detail here. However it is important to note the model is not simple. It has been my personal experience that people and organizations crave simplifying assumptions to the point they embrace them as the only truths that are needed. So, if you are looking for the "three steps to..." or the "five essential factors..." or the "eight ways to" this book is not for you. There is nothing inherently wrong with simplifying assumptions as long as we remember circumstances and context are always more complicated than that. Mintzberg correctly points out how a lot of management or leadership books focus on one competency or aspect and what is needed is a balance/blending of many aspects. Specifically he states "...it is time to recognize that managing is neither science nor a profession; it is a practice, learned primarily through experience, and rooted in context." Therefore, if you are a manager and believe you can always get better at it, this is a book you should read. It provides a context for management. It does not tell you what to do in specific situations. I personally believe that greatness (at anything) is the summation of knowledge of a lot of little things. Everyone can get the basics right but it is the subtleties that result from knowledge and real life experience that result in exceptional levels of performance. With regard to the book itself the book has key points in bold text and this makes it easy for time constrained readers to quickly scan to items of importance and and then dive in where there is an interest. Here are ten interesting and/or valuable points I found in the book. There are many more but I will just list these from my perspective: I. Much of an informed manager's information is not even verbal so much as visceral...seen and felt more than heard. II. In the leading role managers help to bring out the energy that naturally exists in people. III. Managers are gatekeepers and buffers in the flow of influence. (Mintzberg's description of 5 ways managers can get this wrong is priceless) IV. The pressures of managing are not temporary but perpetual. V. Managing is no job to approach with hesitation: it simply requires too much of the total person. VI. Successful managers are flawed, we are all flawed, but there particular flaws are not fatal, at least under the circumstances. VII. Managing contains many inescapable conundrums. (Chapter 5 documents these and is worth the price of the book by itself) VIII. The self study questions for managers in Chapter 6 are a powerful tool to improve your performance as a manager. IX. A remarkable number of effective managers are reflective: they know how to learn from their own