Why Managers Fail

I finished reading an article recently entitled “Why Managers Fail.” Using data from a survey by the Center for Creative Leadership, the article cited five primary causes for managerial failure. As it turns out, all five failures are self-inflicted; i.e, in the vast majority of cases, the manager is at fault for his or her own failure.

What was the single biggest cause of managerial failure? Well, it wasn’t the inability to plan or organize. Nor was it the inability to multi-task or solve problems. It wasn’t even the inability to write reports or manage budgets. Actually, the biggest reason for management failure turns out to be the inability to get along with employees! According to the article:

Poor interpersonal skills are the single biggest reason for failure, particularly in the early and middle stages of a manager’s career. For some, the problem is getting along with subordinates. In most cases, when managers cannot inspire and win loyalty of subordinates, it is because they are not good listeners, don’t give and take criticism well, and view conflict as something bad, instead of something inevitable that has to be handled.

If you are a manager – or about to become a manager – this would be good information to have, don’t you think? Rarely are individuals promoted to managerial positions because of their people skills; instead, management promotions are usually based on performance, knowledge, or skill. If you’re the top performer, the person who knows more than anyone else, or can do something better than your co-workers, the chances are good that you will be considered for the open management position when it comes.

Unfortunately, if your people skills are lacking, you may be in big trouble. Wouldn’t it make sense to get some assessment of – and maybe even some training for – your listening skills, conflict resolution skills , and your ability to deal with criticism?

Another primary cause of management failure is labeled as the “Me Only” Syndrome – an overriding concern for how much credit YOU get, how much money YOU make, and how fast YOU are moving up the ladder. In some cases, I think these these two reasons might be related, don’t you? If you’re completely self-centered, chances are not great that employees will like you.

Here’s the bottom line. As a manager, you will find it very difficult to succeed if you only care about yourself, or, you don’t have the people skills to connect with your employees. However, some managers consider themselves to be good at what they do even if they experience high employee turnover or have employees that don’t like them. They will often claim that, “I’m not here to be popular” or “You just can’t find good people these days.”

If you hire them, train them, and manage them, who is responsible if they fail?