Leadership and the One Minute Manager

Increasing Effectiveness Through Situational Leadership II

Ken Blanchard, Patricia Zigarmi, Drea Zigarmi

• Publisher: William Morrow
• Year: 2013
• Print ISBN: 9780062309440
• eBook ISBN: 9780062309457
• Topic: Personal Development
• Subtopic: Business Development

This updated edition of management guru Ken Blanchard’s classic work Leadership and the One Minute Manager® teaches leaders the world renowned method of developing self-reliance in those they manage: Situational Leadership® II.

From Leadership and the One Minute Manager® you’ll learn why tailoring management styles to individual employees is so important; why knowing when to delegate, support, or direct is critical; and how to identify the leadership style suited to a particular person.

By consistently using Situational Leadership® II’s proven model and powerful techniques, leaders can develop and retain competent, committed employees. This remarkable, easy-to-follow book is a priceless guide to personalized leadership that elicits the best performance from your staff—and the best bottom line for any business.

Excerpt from The New One Minute Manager

Chapter 1

ONCE there was a bright young man who was looking for a special kind of manager who could lead and manage in today’s changing world.

He wanted to find one who encouraged people to balance their work and their life, so that each became more meaningful and enjoyable.

He wanted to work for one and he wanted to become one.

His search had taken him over many years to the far corners of the world.

He had been in small towns and in the capitals of powerful nations.

He had spoken with many managers who were trying to deal with a rapidly changing world: executives and entrepreneurs, government administrators and military personnel, university presidents and foundation directors; with managers of shops and stores, of restaurants, banks, and hotels; with men and women—young and old.

He had gone into every kind of office, large and small, luxurious and sparse, with windows and without.

He was beginning to see the full spectrum of how people manage people.

But he wasn’t always pleased with what he saw.

He had seen many “tough” managers whose organizations seemed to win while the people working there lost.

Some thought they were good managers. Many thought otherwise.

As the young man sat in each of these “tough” people’s offices, he asked, “What kind of a manager would you say you are?”

Their answers varied only slightly.

“I’m a bottom-line manager—I keep on top of the situation,” he was told. “Hard-nosed.” “Realistic.” “Profit-minded.”

They said they had always managed that way and saw no reason to change.

He heard the pride in their voices and their interest in results.

The young man also met many “nice” managers whose people seemed to win while their organizations lost.

Some of the people who reported to them thought they were good managers.

Those to whom they reported had their doubts.

As the young man sat and listened to these “nice” people answer the same question, he heard:

“I’m a participative manager.” “Supportive.” “Considerate.” “Humanistic.”

They also said they had always managed that way and saw no reason to change.

He heard the pride in their voices and their interest in people.

But he was disturbed.

It was as though most managers in the world were still managing the way they had always done and were primarily interested either in results or in people.

Managers who were interested in results often seemed to be labeled “autocratic,” while the ones interested in people were often labeled “democratic.”

The young man thought each of these types—the “tough” autocrat and the “nice” democrat—was only partially effective. It’s like being half a manager, he thought.

He returned home tired and discouraged.

He might have given up his search long ago, but he had one great advantage. He knew exactly what he was looking for.

In these changing times, he thought, the most effective managers manage themselves and the people they work with so that both the people and the organization profit from their presence.

The young man had looked everywhere for an effective manager but had found only a few. The few he did find would not share their secrets with him. He began to think maybe he would never find what he was looking for.

Then he began hearing marvelous stories about a special manager who lived, surprisingly, in a nearby town. He heard that people liked to work for this man and that they produced great results together.

He also heard that when people applied the manager’s principles to their personal lives, they got great results as well.

He wondered if the stories were really true and, if so, whether this person would be willing to share his secrets with him.

Curious, he phoned the assistant to this special manager to see if he might get an appointment. To his surprise, the assistant put him through to the manager immediately.

The young man asked when he might be able to meet with him, and the manager said, “Anytime this week is fine, except Wednesday morning. You pick the time.”

The young man was puzzled. What kind of manager had that kind of time available? But he was fascinated as well, and went to see him.

WHEN the young man arrived at the Manager’s office, he found him looking out the window. The Manager turned and invited him to sit down. “What can I do for you?”

“I’ve heard great things about you and would like to know more about the way you manage.”

“Well, we’re using our proven methods in several new ways to deal with all the changes that are happening, but we can get to that later. Let’s begin with the basics.

“We used to be a top-down managed company, which worked in its time. But today that structure is too slow. It doesn’t inspire people and it stifles innovation. Customers demand quicker service and better products, so we need everyone to contribute their talent. The brainpower isn’t only in the executive office—it can be found throughout the organization.

“Since speed is a currency of success now, leading with collaboration is far more effective than the old command-and-control system.”

“How do you lead with collaboration?”

“I meet with our team once a week on Wednesday mornings—that’s why I couldn’t meet with you then. At those meetings I listen as our group reviews and analyzes what they achieved the previous week, the problems they had, what remains to be accomplished, and their plans and strategies to get those things done.”

“Are the decisions made at those meetings binding on both you and your team?”

“Yes, they are. The purpose of the meeting is for people to participate in making key decisions about what they’re going to do next.”

“Then you’re a participative manager, aren’t you?” asked the young man.

“Not really. I believe in facilitating, but not in participating in making other people’s decisions.”

“Then what is the purpose of your meetings?”

“Didn’t I just tell you that?”

The young man felt uncomfortable and wished he hadn’t made that mistake.

The Manager paused and took a breath. “We’re here to get results. By drawing on the talents of everyone, we’re a lot more productive.”

“Oh, so you’re more results-oriented than people-oriented.”

The Manager got to his feet and began to walk about. “To succeed sooner, managers must be both results-oriented and people-oriented.

“How on earth can we get results if it’s not through people? So I care about people and results, because they go hand in hand.

“Take a look at this.” The Manager pointed to his computer. “I keep this as my screen saver to remind me of a practical truth.”

*

People Who Feel

Good About

Themselves

Produce

Good Results.

*

As the young man looked at the screen, the Manager said, “Think about yourself. When do you work best? Is it when you feel good about yourself? Or when you don’t?”

The young man nodded as he began to see the obvious. “I get more done when I’m feeling good about myself.”

“Of course you do, and so does everyone else.”

“So,” the visitor said, “helping people feel good about themselves is a key to productivity.”

“Yes. However, remember—productivity is more than just the quantity of work done. It is also the quality.” He walked over to the window and said, “Look at this.”

When the young man reached the window, the Manager pointed to a restaurant below. “Do you see how many customers that restaurant has?”

The young man saw people lined up outside the restaurant door. “Must be a good location for a restaurant,” he observed.

The Manager asked, “If that’s true, why aren’t people lined up in front of the other restaurant two doors away? Why do people want to eat at the fir...

Table of contents

• The Symbol
• Contents
• Introduction
• A Visit from an Entrepreneur
• Being Successful
• Thinking Differently About Leadership
• Different Strokes for Different Folks
• Leadership Style: Perceptions of Others
• Three Skills of a Situational Leader
• Managing the Performance of Others
• Goal Setting
• Diagnosing Development Level
• Leadership Style Flexibility
• The Four Basic Leadership Styles
• Matching Leadership Style to Development Level
• Think Before You Act
• Different Strokes for the Same Folks
• Developing Competence and Commitment
• Turning Around Performance Problems
• Sharing What You’re Doing
• Understanding the Six Conversations
• Positive Assumptions About People
• Becoming an SLII® Leader
• Acknowledgments
• Excerpt from The New One Minute Manager
• About the Authors
• Services Available
• Also by Ken Blanchard
• Copyright
• About the Publisher