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Management versus leadership - Part III

Great leaders help their followers understand that there is a greater good to pursue.

November 1, 2011 by Don Fox — CEO, Firehouse of America

Over the course of my 37 year career in the restaurant industry, I have had the privilege of serving in leadership positions at all organizational levels, from restaurant assistant manager to Chief Executive Officer. This is Part III on a multi-part blog that will delve into my personal thoughts on leadership, and how it can help shape our industry. Click here for Part II and here for Part I.

In my last blog, I closed by saying that most leaders in our industry emerge from the ranks of "managers" and achieve the capacity to lead. Today, I'll elaborate on the distinction between "leadership" and "management."

The distinction is significant. As a manager, you have a responsibility to do what the name implies: you manage. You manage assets. You control inventory, fixtures and facilities. You manage systems, ensuring that components and processes are working correctly. You manage administrative processes. You need certain skills in order to do all of these things effectively. You must learn to delegate; you need time management skills and the ability to prioritize your activities and those of your team. You need to plan and organize the work of the business unit. You must be capable of managing a budget. The list goes on and on.

There is one other critical asset that managers have to manage, and that is people. People are resources that need to be managed. You need to hire them; their time must be scheduled; they must be assigned responsibilities. Their training needs must be managed and specific work responsibilities must be assigned. Their performance must be evaluated, and disciplinary action may need to be employed in the wake of poor performance. Managing physical assets and monetary resources are, by comparison, much easier to manage than human resources.

You can actually be a fairly effective manager without necessarily being a great leader. Your superiors set certain expectations for your performance as a manager, and you manage to those standards and expectations. But I think we would all agree that when great leadership enters into the equation, the manager transcends simply meeting what is required.

Great leaders inspire others to strive to do better; to reach their full potential.

Great leaders restore calm and reason when the team is under pressure and duress.

Great leaders help others see that their personal sacrifice of blood, sweat and tears will help a greater cause and enrich others, not just themselves. To that end, great leaders help their followers understand that there is a greater good to pursue.

Great leaders create an environment where team members have mutual respect for one another, and put the success of the team ahead of their own interests.

Great leaders provide a vision of the desired outcome and offer a clear path for the team to follow.

A great leader is able to gain commitment, not just compliance.

A great leader inspires people to act because of a sense of purpose, not out of fear of retribution.

As you might imagine, it is far easier to train a manager than it is to develop an effective leader. The qualities that a leader needs in order to instill this sort of drive and motivation are far different than the recipe for a successful manager. One of the keys to building a superior, high performing organization is to encourage these leadership traits within your business, and create an environment where people are not afraid to take risks associated with displaying these characteristics.

About Don Fox

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