Why Distinguishing Leadership from Management is Passe'

Posted on March 26, 2023 by Donald Stuart Chappell, One of Thousands of Leadership Coaches on Noomii.

I recently read an article in which the author broke down the three main differences between managing and leading people. While I thought that the author provided some valuable insight, the overall implied theme—as it is with most articles and books I have read, lectures I have attended, and podcasts I have listened to—was that management is the lower-level, base-line means of getting people to do what you want them to do, whereas leadership is the higher-level, more sophisticated means. While I recognize there has been in the past some usefulness to such a perspective, I ultimately think that in our modern organizational environment such a distinction is becoming increasingly misguided.
Most concepts of management continue to depict it along the same lines as did Henri Fayol in the early 20th Century; that is, management gets things done through the use of formalized and prescriptive techniques that are categorized into four main functions: planning, organizing, controlling, and directing. Relatedly, the prevailing view of management as a practice is that it is inflexible, dependent upon rules and policies, closely related to some sort of technical proficiency, and, depending on the level, relatively simple to transfer from one manager to the next (i.e., very much plug-and-play). This perspective of management still holds it fast as a function of law-and-order, strict accountability, and metaphorical bean-counting.

In contrast, leadership is generally seen to reside on a higher tier and to be about getting things done through such qualitative concepts and measures as vision, influence, inspiration, trust, mentorship, motivation, and the building of a network of trusted associates and advisors. Similarly, the practice—or ‘art’, as it is now commonly referred to—of leadership is perceived as an almost intangible, otherworldly panacea for all that ails us and is rare to find and difficult to transfer from one individual to the next. I have also come across such declarations as, ‘leadership creates value, whereas management maintains value,’ and ‘leadership concerns itself with people and ideas, whereas management concerns itself with processes and policies.’ What all these snazzy phrases indicate is that the prevailing view is that management is one (lesser) role and leadership is another (higher) role and while it is accepted that one person can fulfill both, this is considered to be both uncommon and not absolutely necessary to success.

Again, while I see a certain usefulness in distinguishing the two for theoretical and teaching purposes—especially considering that at its conception in the early 20th century, contemporary management practice was indeed very much about directing and controlling and very little about influencing and inspiring—I think that in a modern work environment consisting of generally sophisticated workers, it is the continued emphasis on the distinction that is both misguided and potentially damaging, to both the practice of management and to each organization in which that management is practiced. ‘Leading’ as a manager can no longer be considered as a desired-but-not-required add-on that separates effective managers from superior ones. Exhibiting those less tangible and more qualitative behaviors and traits that have been traditionally and almost exclusively associated with leadership is no longer a means by which to differentiate superior managers from effective ones; rather, it is now a baseline requirement for virtually all managers at all levels. In today’s work environment, planning, organizing, and controlling in the absence of influencing, inspiring, and mentoring is akin to owning a computer that is not connected to the internet—it may look the part and it can perform some basic, isolated tasks, but it ultimately is ineffective because it is not equipped with the most critical means by which objectives become reality. Most of an organization’s top-performing employees are less likely than in the past to accept a plan or an organizational structure or a controlling measure that are not presented and implemented with sincere and effective empathy, consideration, and collaboration—all of which are measures and traits that have been traditionally assigned to “Leaders.” But that is the point, isn’t it? Leading can no longer be seen as separate from effective management, but rather it must be considered an indispensable, integrated component of it.

*For a more nuanced take on this topic, please check out the corresponding episode on The Introspective Leader Podcast. Co-hosted by Stuart, The Introspective Leader Podcast delves into the ideas and practices that will help you become a more effective and respected organizational leader!