Seven reasons why leadership is esteemed above management
Both leadership and management are critically important business disciplines. Each offers something distinct and unique to organisational effectiveness and employee experience. A strong leader cannot make up for the absence of a competent manager. Neither can a manager, no matter how multi-faceted and adept, negate the necessity for capable leadership.
Notwithstanding their uniqueness, these disciplines do not enjoy parity of esteem. Between the two, leadership is consistently regarded more highly. More books have been written about it and more column inches devoted to its deconstruction, understanding and celebration. This blog attempts to explore why that might be the case.
Described below, are ‘seven reasons why leadership is esteemed above management’.
1. The character factor
Leadership is both a test and exposition of character. Ask anyone about the traits that they would expect to see demonstrated in a leader and you will likely hear integrity, empathy, compassion, courage and self-lessness amongst them. These qualities are what we most admire about leadership. They represent everything that we aspire to be, speak to the idealised model of our best selves and provide a form of vicarious existence for the aspirant. This contrasts sharply with the function of management, which as a discipline, is not specifically built on character.
2. The power of relational narrative
In more than 15 years in senior roles I have met countless people who have expressed a desire to be led. However, I cannot recall ever meeting anyone who wants to be managed. The phrase ‘being led’ carries positive images of a purposeful relationship that is both affirming and empowering. This type of relationship is something to be sought out and cultivated. By contrast, ‘being managed’ carries the most negative connotations, ones that are often associated with excess and control. Most people would not subject themselves to such a relationship unless circumstances absolutely necessitated it.
3. The social science
The very best leaders occupy a unique organisational space in the sense that they do not derive power, as managers do, from hierarchical authority. Instead, leadership power is derived from social influence, which is itself developed through relationships that have been carefully nurtured over time. The best leaders are effective because of their personal standing with others, not because of their job title or spans of organisational control. Therefore, by their very nature, leaders can achieve outcomes in ways that are not possible for those occupying management positions.
4. Deep fascination
For many including myself, leadership holds a deep and abiding fascination. At a fundamental level, leadership is multi-faceted and complex. Its drivers and motivators span the spectrum, whilst its ability to motivate those within its orbit are unrivalled. There is a heroism and nobility to leadership that make those who live up to its highest ideals, worthy of deep admiration. Unlike management, which exists entirely as a series of processes, practices and observations, leadership is a consciousness that shapes how lives are lived, more than how functions are performed.
5. The art of inspiration
Inspiration is a leadership ‘superpower’. It is a totally unique construct, that has no parallel in management. Where leaders have learnt to confidently inspire, those in management can only instruct. Inspiration is stimulated by the examples set and modelled, by leaders themselves. It is these behaviours that trigger a reaction in others that may manifest as increased resilience, strengthened resolve and the redoubling of effort. Even so, the true impact of inspiration is not when people do what they would have done anyway, but rather when they do what they would not.
6. Hard wired sensitivity
Sensitivity levels are evidence of responsiveness to stimuli. Therefore, the more responsive a person is to a stimulus, the greater their level of sensitivity. Whilst both leadership and management deliver stimuli, leadership appears to be the one where sensitivity levels are highest. As such, much as employees will recognise the capabilities of good management, they will even more readily acknowledge the strengths of effective leadership. The phrase: ‘you know it when you see it’ suggests that sensitivity towards leadership is hard wired in a way that sensitivity to management is not.
7. Enduring impact
One of the most distinctive features of leadership is its lasting impact on those who have been affected by it. Unlike management, which focuses on systems and routines to drive business results, effective leadership is measured by its ability to produce new leaders and enhance the capability of existing ones. Therefore, the ultimate measure of leadership competence is the maturation of subordinates. When leadership works, it creates a ‘multiplier effect’, empowering others to empower others. No-one who has truly been touched by it, can ever remain the same.
The seven reasons set out in this blog could easily be a dozen or more in someone else’s iteration. As closely aligned and interdependent as leadership and management are, they are worlds apart in terms of perception. Much of that difference is attributable to the unique relational underpinnings of leadership. What connects us appeals to us in a way that mere function cannot. When it comes to leadership, as my niece would say, ‘it hits different’.
