Management and professional managers
By Kofi Tetteh
People, particularly in industries and commerce and society in general, view change more consistently as a threat to present stability and therefore potentially undesirable in their consequences. The result of this is that we tend to place a premium on 'doing it as usual'.There is no denial of the fact that there is tremendous demonstrated potential for industrial development, technical innovation and health creation in Ghana today. Commentators' and observers' comment seem to point to non-deliverance of the goods. So what are the road blocks that have been impeding us?
Although many reasons have been assigned to the non-realisation of this potential, the real and often binding constraint on progress, development and acceleration of innovation is lack of efficient management and lack of availability of professional managers.
In this analysis an attempt is made to highlight some of the influences which dampen the thrust of efficient management and consequently lead to slow, if not stunted development, innovation and change. Then some suggestions will be offered.
Two broad attitudes have been known to colour the thinking of some so-called 'managers' who are at the helm of affairs. In the first place, is the relative value placed on professional education and experience as qualification for executive positions.
While many countries put more emphasis on professionalisation of management in all sectors of the economy and society, the degree to which we do this in Ghana leaves much to be desired. In most industrial countries, a high percentage of candidates for managerial and executive positions in industries, commerce and civil service have some sort of technical preparation for their future careers through their college and university education.
In addition to this, what happens on the job in the way of further specialisation and training is often viewed as an intensification of professional or specialist training already received at the university or college level.
On the contrary, in Ghana most managerial recruits to industry, commerce and public services had little or no prior training or education directly relevant to their business employment. The contemporary situation is one which illustrates the strong persistence of the talented amateur executive contrasted with the specialist and the professional executive which personifies the new industrial culture in countries like Japan, Germany and U.S. The amateur executive or manager learns a great deal in practice on the job, but not the underlying guiding principles.
In contrast the professional manager, apart from his on-the-job- practice, knows the underpinning guiding principles of management. He learns the essence of objective setting and policy-making, planning and forecasting. He knows the whys of organisation and co-ordination, he appreciates the benefits of control and motivations, and he knows the needs for budgeting. The professional manager evaluates every situation under the 5WH (What, Why, Whom, When, How) analysis. He diagnoses every condition he faces giving serious consideration to 'Pest' (political, economic, societal and technological environments) and 'Swot' (strength, weakness, opportunity and threat). The professional manager processes and practices his ideas and skills. He functions, takes decision.
Professional managers have been known to have tremendous impact on the entire economy by being able to mobilize manpower and alter resources to produce goods and services to meet expressed needs of the people.
Another disadvantage of the amateur is the consequence this has for the level of commitment to the position occupied on an amateur basis.
A professional has some degree of commitment to and is dedicated towards his professional practice. This is demonstrated by such professions as Doctors, Lawyers, Architects. The amateur is more likely to be able to take it or leave it, depending on his mood, or the circumstances of operations. To the extent that commitment to a professional practice is a motivation to improve the quality of practice, the lack of commitment among amateurs may turn out to be dysfunctional.
The professional manager has a code of practice, belongs to a professional body or institution and to a large degree committed to it. Typically, a professional manager has been found to be one who after a period of stunt on the job goes to read for the MBA & DMS. His learning does not end here. But he regularly keeps in touch with his professional body/institution for new ideas, values and techniques which he constantly translates into practice. To him "management is a journey and not a destination" (Sir Peter Parker, chairman British Institute of Management.)
The amateur in contrast is one who from college/university starts and ends his career learning the job only through practice. As intimated, successful industries in countries like Germany, UK, France and Japan have more professional managers performing the management functions.
So what lessons are there to be learnt? We can emulate Our competitors and change the ways we do things by putting higher premiums on professionalism in managerial and executive roles in all sectors of our society. There is now a need for it. If efficient management can be achieved through professional managers, why don't we do likewise? Methods, means and approaches to success are not the prerogatives of any one country or society. The concept of 'quality circle' is of Japanese origin but in recent years it has gained currency in the UK and other western countries and the US. We also find that the fully-automated factory has US origins, but Japan is now leading the way. The message therefore is: Let us learn from others.
The second attitude which have been found to be debilitating is the manner in which change is approached and particularly ideas about perfectability and the risks entailed in undertaking unproven innovations.
People, particularly in industries and commerce and society in general view change more consistently as a threat to present stability and therefore potentially undesirable in their consequences. The result of this is that we tend to see it as usual' for fear that it will not be known for a long time whether a newly chosen direction will be good or bad.
This view has been collaborated in "A study of the transfer of training from developed to less developed countries: The case for Ghana' - Journal of Management Studies, February 1976. The authors discovered that those who did training in developed countries, on their return, could not translate their new skills, ideas and values into consequential practice because people would not change and adapt to new ideas. Though this study took place almost a decade ago, we still get the same message: "This is the way we have done it all these years". Thus unlike industrial countries, we tend to place emphasis on old ideas and values which do not meet any modern needs.
Our second lesson is to learn how to change. Our outlook needs to be more forward-oriented. We need to be more innovative, and risk-takers.
In a recent article "Risk takers of the world" in Management Today November 1984, a survey showed that some of the successful countries for example U.S.A. and Japan took more risk, and one of the reasons why they were successful risk takers was that they have more competent and efficient management. A sharp two- edged sword which we can also use.
Professional managers have been known to have tremendous impact on the entire economy by being able to mobilize manpower and other resources to produce goods and services to meet expressed needs of the people. Wealth creation is a cardinal function of the professional manager.
To the extent that professionals are innovative, amateurs dampen the rate of industrial innovation. And for us to create the wealth for the society we all want there must be an attitudinal volte-face.
