david_chisnall on Nostr: nprofile1q…z8wcz nprofile1q…k58qh I grew up reading management theory books (my ...
nprofile1qy2hwumn8ghj7un9d3shjtnddaehgu3wwp6kyqpq5epx27qyv34yaud9kugaqlgq2a4z054nkwlk63al0g3ql3kj5g4qvz8wcz (nprofile…8wcz) nprofile1qy2hwumn8ghj7un9d3shjtnddaehgu3wwp6kyqpq6m49c77zeutuxa3stnwyehsjuds87lg6rhg5tnd5u36pcsdet2qqhk58qh (nprofile…58qh) I grew up reading management theory books (my father accidentally ran a company and I had a habit of reading books he left lying around). When I started managing at MS, they made all new managers do a huge pile of compulsory training. Two bits were useful. The situational leadership course had under 10 minutes of useful content (split over several hours). The Coaching Habit was actually a good course (and so, when people complained that there was too much, this was the one that they removed from the compulsory list).
My least favourite was one that started with the person telling everyone to select a Teams background that ‘reflected their authentic self’. He then went around and asked people to explain why. There actually was a clear teachable moment here: the only people who put up family pictures were ones in heteronormative relationships, because he’d done nothing to make people feel safe actually being their authentic self in the meeting and so everyone was either part of a default in group or covering. Of course, the point was not made because the teacher was completely oblivious.
He then tried to show how up to date he was by asking a question about characteristics of good leaders and told us that his answer twenty years ago would have been different. His answer twenty years ago was one that management books from twenty years earlier explicitly called out as a dated view that was harmful. That was the point I gave up. So many of the subsequent things in that course were actively harmful I spent the rest of it trying to do damage limitation rather than learning anything.
I am still learning new things about management (and about most other subjects I practice regularly) but there’s no benefit trying to learn from people who behave like the negative stereotypes that books written before I was born tell you to avoid accidentally emulating.
My least favourite was one that started with the person telling everyone to select a Teams background that ‘reflected their authentic self’. He then went around and asked people to explain why. There actually was a clear teachable moment here: the only people who put up family pictures were ones in heteronormative relationships, because he’d done nothing to make people feel safe actually being their authentic self in the meeting and so everyone was either part of a default in group or covering. Of course, the point was not made because the teacher was completely oblivious.
He then tried to show how up to date he was by asking a question about characteristics of good leaders and told us that his answer twenty years ago would have been different. His answer twenty years ago was one that management books from twenty years earlier explicitly called out as a dated view that was harmful. That was the point I gave up. So many of the subsequent things in that course were actively harmful I spent the rest of it trying to do damage limitation rather than learning anything.
I am still learning new things about management (and about most other subjects I practice regularly) but there’s no benefit trying to learn from people who behave like the negative stereotypes that books written before I was born tell you to avoid accidentally emulating.