Essay on Article Review Soft vs Hard Management - 740 Words

This article was in the Harvard Business Review December of 2001. Is â€Å"hard† management the way to go or is the other way around is â€Å"soft† management the best way to manage? In the article Peace is arguing that soft managers are better managers than hard managers. Peace describes a hard manager as a person who is self-confident, arrogant, and thick skinned. While he describes a soft manager one that listens to criticism and takes time to notice employees opinions. If one has ever worked they have probably experienced hard and soft managers. In the article Peace describes two stories that illustrates the positive aspects to soft management. In the first story he tells of when he was a manager at Synthetic Fuels Division of Westinghouse. The†¦show more content†¦This was a very brave act that Pearce had done. Most hard managers would not have taken the time to let the employees know that they are respected. Most hard managers would have had their â€Å"puppets† break the bad news to the unlucky 15. Peace being the soft manager that he is showed compassion towards them, which also showed the remaining employees his compassion towards them. In the second story Peace was working as the vice president of Westinghouse Steam Turbine Division. In this story the focus is on Peace’s boss the president of the company, Gene. When Gene became the president of the company it was under a depression state in that it wasn’t making much of a profit at all. The workers were in a very brutal union that threatened those who even dared to cross picket lines. Gene understood the kind of people that he would be dealing with in trying to communicate the goals of the company to the entire work force. Instead of having the president of the union tell the work force about the companies goals, Gene decided he would do it a division at a time himself. When he done so he received much criticism while giving these presentations. Peace did not understand why Gene would do this to himself, but after a few weeks as Gene walked about the floor he received nods of gratitude. Gene had made a gesture of friendship to the workforce by doing i t himself. This is another form of soft management andShow MoreRelatedWhat Makes A Successful Nurse Leader?1624 Words   |  7 Pagesare leaders already without even knowing it. With the proper preparation and guidance, all nurses have the potential to be great leaders and managers. Manager vs. leader The terms manager and leader are often used interchangeably, but in reality they possess very different qualities. It can be said that leaders need to have some management skills, but managers do not need to possess leadership qualities. Some qualities they do have in common include the ability to work with groups of people and theRead MoreSuccession Planning Essay1438 Words   |  6 Pageseach individual or department. Managers conduct initial performance planning discussing with employees and provide direction through coaching sections. After the performance planning discussion, employee’s drafts performance plan for the manager’s review. This planning discussion is followed up by the employee finalizing his or her draft with his or her manager. Overall, managers/supervisors at each level develop specific goals that support department or team goals which in turn support the corporateRead MoreA Study on the Mental Setup of the Working People in Managing Conflict Thr ough Soft Skills with Special Reference to Gender2477 Words   |  10 PagesA Study on the Mental Setup of the Working People in Managing Conflict through Soft Skills with special reference to Gender Senthil K. Nathan Dr. Sw. Rajamanoharane Department of Management Studies J.J. College of Engineering and Technology Tiruchirappalli 620 001, Tamil Nadu, India senknat@yahoo.com, swrksr@gmail.com Abstract The term Conflict is an inseparable one in everybody’s life. Conflict is defined as a struggle or contest between people with opposing needs, ideas, beliefs, values,Read MoreThe Law of Line Extension1854 Words   |  8 PagesCompanies are forced to take into consideration all of the risks involved when creating a new line extension. If a new product proves to be a massive failure, the reputation of the company name may be ruined. Meaning that if this same company works hard to create a perfect product, in the future, consumers may not be willing to try it based on the company’s previous downfall. (Anzalone, 2013). Each new line extension needs to have a strategic plan for distribution and sales. Companies must rememberRead MoreEstablishing Critical Success Criteria For A Project Management Success2122 Words   |  9 Pagesseveral reasons for this. One, based in historical views of project management, is that project success is directly tied to the iron triangle of requirements, namely time, cost, and quality. Another reason may be that it is very difficult to accurately define meaningful success criteria. It appears that the only thing most, but not all, researchers can agree on is that true project success encompasses more than just project management success. Goatham (2013) classified the definitions of projectRead MoreAgile Development for Non Software Industries3718 Words   |  15 PagesOperation Suppy Chain Management David Imboden, Livia Artuso, Clariss Chow, Youssef Hautier, Topic: Are Agile development / Scrum approaches applicable to other product domain than the software development? 1. Introduction The development of a new product is key for a company. The products can be very simple (a new fork in the Ikea assortment) to extremely complex (let’s think about a new airplane for Airbus), their development still requires a multidisciplinary approach, implies a lotRead MoreDefining Negotiation : Influencing Encompasses Persuading And Negotiating1864 Words   |  8 Pagesseveral ways to look at this: †¢ Short term vs. long term – in a negotiation there is a risk of sacrificing long term gains by settling for short term results. It depends however on the stakes. If the stakes are small then success can be defined in terms of short term gains. However for substantial negotiations (example- the NHS Junior Doctors contract), pressure to produce results in the short term can be counter-productive over the long term. †¢ Win/lose vs. win/win – Negotiation is frequently viewedRead MoreCoca Cola Micro Macro Factors4499 Words   |  18 Pages1 Overview of marketing management According to Philip Kotler (2000): Marketing management has the task of influencing the level, timing, and compositions of demand in a way that will help the organisation achieve its objectives. Marketing management is essentially demand management. The art and science of choosing target markets and getting, keeping and growing customers through creating, delivering, and communicating superior customer value. Marketing management is essential to an organisationRead MoreThe Fortune at the Bottom of Pyramid4702 Words   |  19 Pages regardless of whether they are an established multi-national corporation or a start-up trying to build a brand from scratch. While literature detailing the benefits of social enterprises is widespread, little attention is paid to the personnel management and organization building of small- and mediumsized enterprises trying to operate in these markets. After a ten-month field placement with two sales-focused Acumen Fund investees in India and Pakistan, Heidi Krauel and Joel Montgomery (2009 AcumenRead MoreStrategic Management at the Walt Disney Company4260 Words   |  18 Pages Eisner was well known for his micromanagement and top down approach to management (Gunther, 1999), which served the company well during the 1990s when he could focus on single brands. The production of animated feature films which are successful at the box office can generate revenue for all Disney’s business divisions from theme parks to theatre to consumer products (Gunther amp; Hajim, 2006). However Eisner’s management approach seemed to be ineffective for the digital age in which companies