Leadership and IT

This blog grew out of a number of presentations that were made at the ACM SIGUCCS Management Symposium in Spring 2009 , the EDUCAUSE Mid-Atlantic Regional Conference in Winter of l 2010, and SunGard Summit 2011. It is based on the book "Lincoln on Leadership" by Donald T. Phillips. Please add comments on how you feel these principles can be applied to Information Technology.

Thursday, April 23, 2009

Managing while walking about

One of the first principles Phillip's discusses in his book is the concept of managing while walking about or getting out into our organization to work with your staff. Do you feel this is vital or not. Can it become too time consuming? Where is it most appropriate?
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3 comments:

  1. Sara RodgersMarch 5, 2009 at 2:47 PM

    I find that when I get out and talk with the people on my team, I get great feedback and learn more about the issues they are addressing. Many times this gives me a better perspective than written reports. Impromptu discussions can also be more productive than scheduled meetings.

    It also improves morale when the team leader/supervisor takes the time to discuss issues and check on how staff members are doing.

    The time is well invested if done in moderation.

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  2. TimApril 23, 2009 at 9:27 PM

    I feel that getting out and talking to people is one of the best ways to keep in touch with staff and also to get a better understanding of the issues they face. And as Sara points out can many times be more productive than a scheduled meeting.

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  3. allanApril 27, 2009 at 1:22 PM

    I would be shocked if anyone didn't agree with this idea, to be honest.

    If an organization is so big that one cannot connect with multiple levels (much less just direct reports) via "walking around," (see Gladwell's comments on size of organizations, specifically re: Gore Associates), then it's time to trim the organization or split it up.

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