Can management be cut loose
So i have been addicted to a book written by W. E. Pete Peterson. The name of the book is Almost Perfect and while its very old it does make for some really good reading as it gives some good insight into the rise of a company.
To those of you that cant get access to the book in its printed form you can read it online for free (yes its legal).
After reading through quite a bit of the book the author mentions a very interesting point (something which you might have picked up along the way as well) and that is that the management of the company basically reigned free in what they did also almost none of them had proper experience or qualifications in what they did. They basically just learnt as they went and tried to keep up with the constantly changing industry.
Now as you read on the author realizes that while this worked for a while in the end they did need to start training the management properly and setting up some bounds for them as well as bringing in more management than they would have liked.
What was so intresting about this was that it is very much like the LILO startup format that alot of companies are following (the link to the original article evades me). What the format basically says is that you put in a little and then take out a little. So what you end up doing is giving the company a chance to prove itself and in proving itself by being sustainable it attracts more investors which in turn make the company more of a company by providing income on the basis that a set of rules are put in place (just general company stuff)
So by removing the formalities of management int start up company is the company doomed from the start (although SSI made a ton of money) or is this the way that companies are going to be run in future. Does this also mean that once a company starts making money that a management structure should be brought in. Some times this might not always work because of the way the company started (i.e. no management ) and the workers are just so used to it that they cant or wont change to the new shape of the company.
A prime example of this mixed management structure is google. If you haven’t heard of them and the entire history i think its time you took a little adventure. They started on a very similar road as SSI where the company was primarily run by programmers and only very latter did management come into the picture. After the management people felt that they were not needed but they kept on getting built into the structure of the company. While no one can deny that they are making money but are they doomed to failure from the start or has bringing in the management structure at a very early stage saved them.
Granted a lot of the reasons that SSI failed were not due to management but you have to sometimes wonder if management and its business way of thinking could have saved the company.
There is still a ton of things i want to discuss about this book but that all for another post. For now let me know what you think about this in the comments
~stalkerh.
5 Comments to “Can management be cut loose”
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No – otherwise I would not have a job :)
Hehe , i guess that one way of looking at it
1stly I don’t like the term management. I prefer a flat structure where you have a team where each member has different responsibilities and is accountable to each other.
Certain members will have expertise and responsibilities in technical sciences e.g. software development, graphic design etc while others will have expertise and responsibility in management sciences i.e. how to run a profitable and sustainable business.
While running a business might be of lesser concern in start-up phase where more focus is given to innovation and product development it must receive greater attention in later stages.
Greater attention does not mean greater than innovation and product development as without a product or service you don’t have anything to offer. Greater attention means you now have a host of other things to consider that can also make or break your business e.g. how to manage a cash flow, how to handle employee relations, how to handle investor relations etc.
Hey,
I just thought I would sent you a note to let you know I did a drop on your blog to be avertised and its been like 2 or so days and no one has accepted or denied it so I thought I would pop in and say hi!
Hope you will except it!
Thanks,
Christopher
Hey
Sorry i did not accept sooner just been really busy and the list was piling up, i have accepted your card.
Thanks again for the drop