There are more books and articles published and courses organised about leadership than any other sub-discipline of business. We have our fair share in the cultural sector.
This year I attended a Cultural Leadership Programme leadership facilitation skills course run by Action Learning Associates. Its aim was to provide support in developing leadership skills – helping participants make innovative and creative decisions.
It was a great course and I would recommend it to others. It helped me improve my management skills; in particular, understanding behaviour and encouraging new ways of working.
But nowhere, either on the course or in the subsequent evaluation, was management touched on. In his book Reinventing Management, Julian Birkinshaw of the London Business School describes how “management now sits firmly in the shadow of leadership, often viewed as a necessary but rather tedious activity”.
He says that in the business world, this has led to organisations failing to implement their plans as effectively as they could and that a gap is emerging between organisational goals and the ability to achieve them. Birkinshaw sees the role of management, the discipline of getting work done through others, filling this gap.
Leadership thinkers view managers as those who plan, budget, organise and control while leaders set direction, manage change and motivate people. Managers follow rules and promote efficiency, while leaders focus on challenging the rules and promoting effectiveness. Birkinshaw sees this as insulting and questions why motivating people should fall outside the job description of a manager.
He suggests that “leadership is what you say and how you say it, whereas management is what you do and how you do it” – they are complementary and of equal importance.
We need to be able to influence others through our ideas and actions but we also need to be able to get the work done through managing others on a daily basis.
Barack Obama’s presidential campaign is acknowledged as being well managed and innovative. It utilised Obama’s leadership skills – his vision and charisma. Birkinshaw says that a quarter of his success was down to good management and three-quarters to good leadership.
Now in office the emphasis has shifted. His administration is now three-quarters management and one-quarter leadership. Birkinshaw argues that the success or failure of his administration lies on his qualities as a manager.
It is no bad thing that museums have been concentrating efforts on improving leadership – it had to be done. But perhaps we need to look again at how we can make sure museums are run efficiently. I think we should follow Obama’s lead.
Lucy Shaw is diversify and monument fellowship coordinator at the Museums Association
This year I attended a Cultural Leadership Programme leadership facilitation skills course run by Action Learning Associates. Its aim was to provide support in developing leadership skills – helping participants make innovative and creative decisions.
It was a great course and I would recommend it to others. It helped me improve my management skills; in particular, understanding behaviour and encouraging new ways of working.
But nowhere, either on the course or in the subsequent evaluation, was management touched on. In his book Reinventing Management, Julian Birkinshaw of the London Business School describes how “management now sits firmly in the shadow of leadership, often viewed as a necessary but rather tedious activity”.
He says that in the business world, this has led to organisations failing to implement their plans as effectively as they could and that a gap is emerging between organisational goals and the ability to achieve them. Birkinshaw sees the role of management, the discipline of getting work done through others, filling this gap.
Leadership thinkers view managers as those who plan, budget, organise and control while leaders set direction, manage change and motivate people. Managers follow rules and promote efficiency, while leaders focus on challenging the rules and promoting effectiveness. Birkinshaw sees this as insulting and questions why motivating people should fall outside the job description of a manager.
He suggests that “leadership is what you say and how you say it, whereas management is what you do and how you do it” – they are complementary and of equal importance.
We need to be able to influence others through our ideas and actions but we also need to be able to get the work done through managing others on a daily basis.
Barack Obama’s presidential campaign is acknowledged as being well managed and innovative. It utilised Obama’s leadership skills – his vision and charisma. Birkinshaw says that a quarter of his success was down to good management and three-quarters to good leadership.
Now in office the emphasis has shifted. His administration is now three-quarters management and one-quarter leadership. Birkinshaw argues that the success or failure of his administration lies on his qualities as a manager.
It is no bad thing that museums have been concentrating efforts on improving leadership – it had to be done. But perhaps we need to look again at how we can make sure museums are run efficiently. I think we should follow Obama’s lead.
Lucy Shaw is diversify and monument fellowship coordinator at the Museums Association
