THE EVOLUTION OF THE TURKEY MANAGERS

How did ‘turkey’managers evolve?

For us to truly appreciate our current circumstances, we need to take a glimpse at the evolution of management over the past three decades.This reflection endorses our thoughts that ‘turkey’ managers are simply a product of their environment and a shift in the values of business.

It’s not surprising that older managers are completely confused in how they should manage their own people. After all they have been through so many different philosophies it’s hard to know if there should be one way to manage ….

“Management is like a dry desert path.. strewn with skeletons from past and discarded management principles … “

Era : 60 – 70
Mindset: Hardwork is the basis for advancement,  loyalty,  technical skills,  follow the leader, effort=reward, mateship,

Focus: time at work, getting the job done, a job worth doing is worth doing well,

What helped: promotion based on senority, dedication,

What hindered: lack of focus on inidividual and needs, focus on task at the expense of satisfaction and morale, limited knowledge and application on job fit, promotion opportunity limited to seniority, manager is the source of knowledge – ask for help you’re perceived as weak

Impact: focus on technical rather than people skills, lose people who are ambitious and competent, doesn’t allow fulfulment of esteem and actualisation needs through limited staff involvement

80s to mid 90s
Mindset: Working smart not hard, push for productivity and continuous improvement, reengineering and process improvement, changing belief that people are the most important asset, much more training in the 80s, greater involvement will give greater satisfaction, greater flow of communication 

Focus: greater staff training and staff development, performance reviews, sharing information, getting more out of your people, 
What helped: booming economy, staff retention, limited skill level, multiskilling, competencies, management philosophies from the UK and USA
What hindered: fads, TQM, Accreditaton, Reengineering, Qcircle, Harassment, Affirmation action, 
Giving responsibility without accountability, recession and high unemployment in the early 90s to mid 90

Impact: Raised expectation in people to be trained and multiskill, people increasingly tired of waves of management fads and buzzwords, awareness of the gap between espoused values and management practices

Mid 90
Technology, globalisation, flattening of the hierarchy, push for self-reliance in employees, outsourcing, skills shortages, rationalisation of mangers, increasingly competitive envrionment, acquisitiion and mergers, low cost vs tailored differentiation in services and production – polarisation of markets. 

What helped: greater independence and involvement appeal to certain motivation needs, perception that there’s greater opportunity to shine in a flat structure, recognise that they have mobile competencies – a movement away from having organisation-specific skills and knowledge, international opportunities 

What hindered: cynicism about human resources initiatives at the expense of individual satisfaction and needs, increasing expectation of greater productivity under the banner of empowerment and self-directed groups, loyalty is no longer a valued commodity and a lack of job security