Not necessarily every leader is a manager, but every manager should be a leader. Time has changed but not their role. Manager’s role is redefining & redesigning. This will not be an end definitely, but significantly it has transformed.
Traditionally the manager’s job was designed for different kinds of work patterns, where people used to come to factories in the morning, and used to work like machines. Managers were responsible for their departments and teams to achieve production standards.
But, times have changed, due to rapid changes in technologies, market demands, innovations and new business structures, managers have to do more than ever. The changing attitude about new talent, skills & knowledge, agile work, the span of control has become wider. Now a manager is not only responsible for the standard production but also for employee engagement, development, organizational culture, and change transformations. Managers are expected to work from any corner of the world and have to lead his/her team working remotely. They are no more fillers in the organizational hierarchy.
The fundamental shift is taking place in terms of team leading, power structure, performance appraiser or trainer. A manager is now no more “I, The boss”, but about “We, A team”.
Challenges for the managers now are not to just learn new skills but to unlearn also. The hybrid modes of working have really challenged them to learn new skills, and to unlearn the old school way of working, where the task gets done right in front of the team in a static environment.
So the fundamental shift for managers is that they don’t say that they don’t know what they are supposed to do. And constantly they are into up-skilling, re-skilling and changing the way they work. Organizations have started considering “the managers” not just as middle layer or fillers but much more than that. These are the leaders who lead those niche work groups towards the way organization is scrolling to.
Author: Dr. Bansari Dave, Associate Professor – Unitedworld School of Business (UWSB)
