Business Process Analysis and Transformation

Integration of Leadership and Management
21st Century Operational Excellence

 
The traditional definition of Leadership and Management is that Management is about arranging and telling and Leadership is about nurturing and enhancing.
This may have been the correct definition and organizational model in the past, however company's operating in the 21st Century cannot afford to have managers that have difficulties in leading or leaders that cannot manage.
Some important facts about the status of manufacturing in the U.S. Manufacturing is driving productivity growth in the U.S. economy, increasing at two and half times the rate of the service sector.
Companies with fewer than 100 employees make up more than 94 percent of all U.S. manufactures.
These facts make it obvious that manufacturing is still thriving in the U.S. However, a key to its continued success is their ability to become agile in all aspects of the organization.
Driving this agility is not only automation, specialized software, or new product innovation. It is the unrelenting drive for operations excellence through a combination of leadership and management skills.
Today more than ever building the manager/leader model is a critical component for the achievement of company goals, visions, and strategies.
The manager/leader needs to be involved in energizing people to do new things, to take up new challenges and learn to see the value vs. the non-value in every process from "Quote - To Cash".
Companies cannot afford to have organization levels not consisting of excellent  manager/leaders; they need to start with dynamic top-level leaders that establish a culture and business climate, which is transferable throughout all levels of the management team.  
The existing rules for what a manager is vs. a leader is insufficient for the new-millennium workplace and just as important how companies need to address the new 21st century business challenges.
The manager/leader needs to focus on collaboration, agility, providing value and internal and external customer service.
Daily the manager/leader should ask the question:

• What have I done today to delight my customer
• Did I demonstrate a positive or negative attitude, and how did that affect my credibility and the credibility of my company's mission and values.  
• Did I assist my team in achieving their personal and business goals
• Have I acted fearlessly today

Companies need to insure that every manager has both leadership and management skills necessary to meet individual and company goals.
Can you imagine if in every level of your organization you had an exceptional manager/leader, the dynamics would be fantastic.
Companies should concentrate on working with every manager at every level adding the following leadership skills

• Treat people based on the company culture
• Create and excellence visions based on department goals and how it aligns to the overall goals of the company
• Enthuse and stimulate a shared vision with your team and get them to see the possibilities of becoming excellent
• Challenge the status quo
• Enable your team to work independent of a micro managed condition
• Share the victories
• Challenge/Challenge/Challenge

As a leader and a manager there is a need to get deeply involved with process, issues, improvements and change. I don't mean attending a meeting or two I mean deeply involved with the day-to-day issues become a part of your team not just a casual observer.
This is difficult, the manager/leader will need to prioritize their day, work to a plan have consistency in their schedule and one very important point is learn to say no to request to attend meetings that are time wasters or to become involved with time wasting activities.
Showing this type of dedication to your team and their issues will demonstrate a sense of importance, teamwork and it will demonstrate the dedication necessary to achieve excellence.
The challenge for the manager/leader will be:

• Developing the desire to seek knowledge about yourself and to seek self-improvement

 

• Developing technical proficiency in all aspects of your specific organization

 

• Seek responsibility and take responsibility for your actions

 

•  Most important for a leader is, that you need to be trustworthy and be able to communicate a clear vision and goals.

When your team members are deciding if they respect you as a leader, they do not think about your attributes, rather, they observe what you do so that they can determine who you really are.
I believe that a leader needs to continually search for the "Rallying Cry" what issue, change, or need can he or she use to motivate a team into action that stimulates a driving desire to achieve results, which in turn instills pride and a senses of accomplishment throughout the organization.
Once the "Rallying Cry" is establish the leader then becomes an entrench manager working not at the thousand foot level but at the one inch level.
Companies are continuously working on improvements; they may be in the process of implementing Lean principals, implementing new software, acquisitions, plant relocations etc. With these efforts taking place, it becomes imperative that they transform the key members of the organization into a combination of a leader that can create the correct vision of the future, can motivate people to engage in that vision, and assist in the management an delivery of the vision.
Developing and changing an organization is not a simple process.  It takes time, training, convincing and rewarding. People transformation is very difficult. Some can easily make the transformation some will need to be coached and developed.
Dan Marino
Senior Partner
Marino Associates, LLC
860-623-2521
Call and schedule a Process and Organization Assessment, this assessment will assist in development of an agile and profit driven company.