Management by “Drive”

“There may be companies in which management people do not say: “The only way we ever get anything
done around here is by making a drive on it.” Yet, “management by drive” is the rule rather than the
exception.” – The Practice of Management, Peter Drucker. 1954.

Every organization needs objectives in place in order to move forward. Whether the organization is
successful or not depends on the objectives; however, trying to run a business or a non-profit without
objectives is a futile effort. Every business enterprise requires a team of individuals, and because every
individual is different, the objectives are what unites everyone toward a common goal. Effective
management requires a strong focus and deliverance on key objectives; otherwise the business can
become mismanaged through crisis and drives.

Managers who continuously focus on the “now” and the “emergency” result in being ineffective. The
perception is that focusing and putting all energy into a “crisis” which happens every week or every
month is effective behavior, as a ton of actionables and resources are committed to the cause;
unfortunately, everyone starts to lose the main direction of what the organization wants from them. The
more crises and “fires” occur, the more the management team trails off the path that has been set to
be successful. Teams begin to get burned out and confused, managers continue to believe that dealing
with “drives” is the right thing to do and executives begin to get frustrated on why their plans are not
being executed. A downward spiral for all those involved in any organization.

As an executive or manager you may believe, “I currently manage this way and it is helpful for my team;
when an even bigger event or emergency hits, my team is the one that will be ready for it.”

If I am weight training and bench pressing 100 lbs every day, won’t I be ready to handle and lift 120 lbs
in an emergency? If I can run as hard as I can and not run out of breath for 5 minutes, can’t I push myself
to 6 minutes if need be? Yes, you probably can. The difference is in an organization it is the effectiveness
of each individual collectively as a team that counts. Eventually a member of a team starts to lose sight
of the company’s objectives and does either two things:

1. The employee neglects their primary responsibility and joins in on the drive

2. The employee sabotages the drive collectively and gets their own work done

Both result in ineffective work being done. The entire plant will look busy, everyone in the factory will be
working hard, all those in the offices will be chatting up a storm to work on the “current initiative”, the
managers and executives will work extra hours to make sure that “this unexpected deliverable” is met.

That organization will be working efficiently, but not effectively. The company does not know how to 1
direct and guide their managers, and in effect it misdirects them.

Jorrian.com – Central Hub for Management Knowledge | Jorrian Gelink

Jorrian Gelink
Management Architect
http://www.jorrian.com

Jorrian.com – Central Hub for Management Knowledge | Jorrian Gelink