Lead vs. Manage: A Follow Up
Frank Borelli
Editor-in-Chief
Officer.com
It was once said, though I can’t remember who by, that a civilized man can act like a barbarian, but a barbarian can never act like a civilized man. It occurs to me that the same might be said comparing leaders and managers. A leader can perform management functions, and often must. A manager - if that’s only what they are - is incapable of acting like a leader.
The challenge we face - in law enforcement, all facets of public safety and, many times, in general business as well - is that it is often the managers who get promoted instead of the leaders. Why?
Well, leaders, by their very nature, have an aggressive streak. They may be diplomatic; they may exercise tact; they may be subtle… but they have an aggressive side. That aggressiveness is necessary to being an effective leader. It can also lead to the occasional mistake.
If you own a company and you have to choose between two guys to promote, which do you choose? The apparently calm manager who never takes risks but rarely makes mistakes? Or the leader who has made mistakes but whom everyone seems to want to work hard for? In our world where the almighty dollar reigns supreme many business owners and managers promote the manager.
In law enforcement, however… indeed, in any profession where people might be required to face conflict with courage and determination, leaders are required. Managers just don’t inspire people to follow them into the fray. As a matter of fact, based on my experience, the manager is the guy who says, “I’ll stay here and watch how well you do.” That translates into, “I don’t mind risking your life, but I’m going to stay right here safe and sound.”
In virtually endeavor mankind chooses to pursue, leadership is required. Yes, there is a place for managers - but the trick is knowing which position requires a manager and which requires a leader. Once you’ve worked for a manager when you truly needed leadership you’ll know the difference and never feel the same again.
What do you think?
I find your article intriguing with respect to the differences of leaders vs. managers. I myself am a front line supervisor on the midnight shift in a larger department in CT. We sergeants and below wear blue uniform shirts and lieutenants and above wear white uniform shirts. This is to distinguish between management and workers.
After being promoted to sergeant, all sergeants were given a 3 day class by management where they made absolutely no mistake in defining the fact that we are not considered management. I then asked what we were considered if not part of management because I read Iannone several times in preparation of testing for sergeant. Contrary to the book we were told that “your just supervisors”. I somewhat disagreed with this belief as sergeants are often management on the front line. We must promote the goals, policies and procedures of the department in such a manner to get the foot soldiers to comply.
I have also had a management role in my community as I have just retired as the Fire Chief of a 250 member volunteer department. After spending six years as an Assistant Chief and two as Chief, my philosophy was that I would never ask my members to do anything that I wasn’t willing to do myself and often did. You could often find me rolling hose at the conclusion of an incident along side my members.
I can understand that a Chief of a large police department does not have the time to get involved, but I am a firm believer that the command staff, lieutenants and above, should often display these leadership traits as they direct a scene. In my department, those who get promoted are always those who don’t make waves. These are the same people that get their cruisers at the beginning of the shift and turn them in at the end of the shift. Rarely seen by the others working on the streets.
To me, being a supervisor is being a leader combined with being a manager. I believe that a combination of both traits are the way to accomplish a task and promote the goals of the department. Getting dirty with your subordinates when it is called for and directing them in other occasions. In keeping with that thought, a good leader is one who has shown early on that they are willing to do the grunt work. Members who know that you are not afraid to work will respect you more as you are promoted through the levels. One must remember to continue to perform their duties as they rise in rank and carefully balance this with managing your personnel.
Now just get the Chief to sign off on this type of leadership style.