Becoming a Master Manager: A Competing Values Approach, Fifth Edition

INTRODUCTION: THE COMPETING VALUES APPROACH TO MANAGEMENT

FOUNDATIONS

• The Evolution of Management Models

• The Competing Values Framework

• Organizing the Learning Process—ALAPA

• Core Competency: Thinking Critically

Becoming a more effective manager and leader is a life-long process in learning to transcend paradox. A paradox exists when two seemingly inconsistent or contradictory ideas are actually both true. For example, the claim that "to be a good leader, you must be a good follower" is paradoxical because leaders and followers are generally thought to be engaged in opposite types of behaviors. It also seems paradoxical that so many books have been written about how to become a better manager when most people would agree that you cannot learn how to manage people by reading books.

The competing values approach to management outlined in this text is grounded on the idea that to be effective, managers must navigate a world filled with paradoxes. Managers are often called on to do things that at first glance appear to be mutually exclusive. For example, they must focus on the future at the same time that they pay attention to the present. Managers must meet the needs of their employees while pushing those same employees to do more with less to satisfy increasingly demanding customers ever more quickly. Managers must encourage innovation and risk-taking while ensuring the stability and continuity ...