Contrary to media stories that suggest CEO’s are the key to organizational success, the impact of CEOs, CFOs and other top-level executives on large firms is extremely limited. In fact, these top positions explain less than 5% of the variation in firm performance amongst Fortune 800 companies. Of course, senior leaders set the strategic direction [...]
Span of control, or span of management, refers to the number of direct reports a people leader manages. With a larger span of control, the cost of management can be reduced. However, if the span of control is too large, managers may not have the capacity to effectively lead their people for high performance.
My definition of an effective leader is a people manager (ie.first and mid-level) who inspires commitment, grows employee engagement and work motivation, confronts non-performance and maximises employee performance.
You’ll probably agree that dealing with conflict in the workplace can be a difficult and delicate matter. Which suggests that conflict might be a bad thing. But that’s not necessarily the case.
Your expectations of people and their expectations of themselves are key factors in how well people perform at work. Known as the Pygmalion Effect, the power of expectations cannot be overestimated.
When it comes to maximising employee motivation and performance, first and mid-level managers matter much more than senior leaders. And the reason is as old as the history of human kind.