Offices -- and management theories -- have changed over the years. But people -- and the best ways of working with them -- haven't changed.
It seems these days that organizations increasingly seek “leading edge” solutions to their issues. As the economy and our working lives become more and more complex, saying “Get me the latest thinking on this problem” seems like a logical thing for an executive to do. And yet, I wonder … is it really?
Do we want the “latest” solution — or the “solution” that’s going to work, even if it is “tried and true” (i.e., mundane and boring). Do we want to be “leading edge” for purposes of image and cache, and is the latest necessarily the greatest? Particularly when it comes to managing people, is there really anything new under the sun?
A Little History
Thirty-five years ago, my dad wrote his master’s thesis on “The Human Relations Approach to Management” — arguing for the notion that treating people well is not only the most ethical but also the most productive approach to managing. Since that time, we have seen any number of management theories come down the pike, from ideas around “Management By Walking Around” (Peters and Waterman), to thinking on “empowerment” and “quality circles,” to the latest notions of “engagement” and “servant leadership.” Before that, earlier in the past century, managers learned about the “Hawthorne Effect” and contemplated “Theory X” and “Theory Y.” All have been “leading edge” for a moment in time. But does their value come from their “edginess” — or from the fact that they all revolve around the same core principles?
Core Principles
In one way or another, couldn’t you say that all of these theories really come back to a few central ideas:
- Treat people decently (see last week’s “Do Unto Others” post)
- Listen for understanding (hear what is being said — or not said — in the margins)
- Understand their wants and needs (i.e., take them seriously and care about them)
- Remember that the people doing the job probably have the best ideas about how to do the job best
- Give them the resources they need to do the job … then get out of the way and let them do it
- Help them see the “big picture” (how their work helps the company and its customers)
- Have the courage to make the tough calls, for the good of all (i.e., people want, need, respect, and expect a leader who will help move us forward)
History moves on and the world evolves, but at its core, human nature — and what’s productive, and not, in organizations — really remains the same. It’s neat and exciting to be at “the leading edge” — and it’s absolutely fine, as long as we remember what’s at the core. Turns out that “the human relations approach to management” might be leading edge, after all!
What are your thoughts on “old” theories that still work just as well today as they ever did?
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The subject of human relations in industry is one of the most important things in the whole field of business and one which we must investigate and teach.
Wallace B. Donham, Dean of Harvard Business School
to Harvard President A. Lawrence Lowell, 1925
HR Perspectives 