It's a myth that managers have more freedom to achieve results as they wish. In fact, organizational interdependencies limit the freedom managers have to make decisions and take action independently.
Instead, managers must work to achieve results within the context of their organization and the broader business environment. The implications of this interdependence are generally understood as demands and constraints on what a manager is free to do.
Being a successful manager will require you to find ways to work successfully within the constraints of your job and in response to its demands.
Demands
As a manager, you'll face demands on a daily basis. Exploring the types of demands you'll face as a manager will prepare you to successfully deal with them when you need to.
In addition to the demands you place on yourself, you'll typically have demands imposed on you by your boss, your direct reports, other managers, the system within which you work, and various external forces.
Your boss will make demands of you. Typically, these demands will be related to the goals set for your team or the organization. For example, your boss may require you to produce weekly progress reports on projects you're involved with, or expect you to raise productivity by the end of the next quarter or hire new team members.
Your direct reports will certainly make demands of you. First and foremost, they'll expect you to provide them with what they need to do their jobs. Typical demands will include training, advice, support, resources, and equipment. For instance, suppose you ask your team members what you can do to help them perform better. You may find out your team wants improvements to make an antiquated procedure more efficient, comprehensive training on new procedures, and new computers. Other managers are also likely to place demands on you.
Essentially, you can expect other managers to make demands of you that will support them in their efforts to achieve their own goals.
Your organization will also have its own set of systems that will place demands on you. System demands include budgets, reports, and meetings.
Finally, external forces will place demands on you. Your customers, suppliers, stakeholders, legal regulations, and members of special interest groups may require information, attention, or action from you.
Constraints
Part of your role as a manager is learning to work successfully within the constraints that limit what you can do.
How you do your job will be limited by some specific constraints:
- expectations
- resources
- technology
- location
- policies and procedures
Everyone you work with, both internally and externally, will have expectations that will constrain how you'll be able to act. Of course, you'll have your own expectations to work with. But you'll also have the expectations of superiors, peers, direct reports, and perhaps suppliers or customers to consider. For example, your direct reports will expect you to support them in their efforts to do their work. You'll need to meet these expectations or risk losing credibility and respect. And your own supervisor may expect you to make tradeoffs and manage risks, as well as to motivate direct reports to support company goals.
As a manager you'll quickly learn that nearly all resources are limited in some way. This will, of course, constrain or limit how you do your job. You'll need to make the best use of the resources you do have. This may include negotiating and trading resources with other managers to get the resources needed to accomplish goals.
You may find that both the quality and type of technology available to you will constrain what you can do. For instance, suppose you've been tasked with implementing new security measures. Although you'd like to use facial recognition software, your company doesn't have the technology to support this. Instead, you'll have to make use of available technology.
Location may also present constraints on how you do your job. Often, you'll work with departments, suppliers, and customers from various locations. You may also find yourself managing teams from various geographic locations or individuals working from their homes.
Finally, policies and procedures will constrain how you do your job. When your organization's policies and procedures limit what you can do, you'll have to work within these constraints to complete your work and achieve your goals.
Constraints may limit your ability to perform certain tasks as a manager. Demands are things you must do because people, systems, or legislation require it. Typically, demands will come from your boss, your direct reports, other managers, the system, and external forces. Constraints are things that limit how you do your job. Constraints include things like expectations, resources, technology, location, and policies and procedures.