post # 387 — Wednesday, June 13, 2007 — a Managing post
The 2R Manager
In preparation for a seminar I was doing, I reviewed a wonderful book called “The 2R Manager,” (Jossey Bass, 2002) for which I wrote the foreword, and which I recommend a lot.
It was written by Peter Friedes, the former CEO of Hewitt Associates, the HR consulting firm.
Pete’s basic insight is that, to be effective in managing others, we must know both how to be “requiring” of people (that’s the first R) – make sure that they deliver on and live up to the tasks they take on. A manager must also, however, do this in a way that “Relates” (the second R) to each individual.
These two dimensions can define nine kinds of managers:
The first four are the extremes:
The Abdicator: low requiring, low relating
The Demander: high requiring, low relating
The Pleaser: low requiring, high relating
The Overwhelmer: high requiring, high relating
Then there are four which are less problematical, but still less than perfect:
The Supervisor: About right requiring, but low relating
The Friend: About right relating, but low requiring
The Encroacher: About right requiring, but high relating
The Energizer: About right relating, but high requiring
The best, in Pete’s view, is someone who is about right in both requiring and relating: The 2R Manager.
Which are you? Which is your boss?
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Diana Hird said
www.hirdassociates.com
As an exercise in applying the 2R categories, how would you all categorize the boss in the sitcom The Office? I haven't read the 2R book (though I'm utterly intrigued) but I'm thinking he's low on requiring. As for relating? Wouldn't that depend on whether we're looking at quantity or quality of relating? He definitely tries to be the pleaser but I can't say he's pleasing anyone other than himself.
posted on Wednesday, June 13, 2007