Should You Become a Manager or a Leader?

Manager or leader? Leader or manager? The debate as to whether you should aspire to become one or the other still rages in many circles. The first—and most important—key is to understand the difference. Both types bring value to their employers and themselves. But is one really better than the other?

Managers

Managers typically “direct” people, issues, and other resources to reach company goals and objectives. Further, employers typically measure a manager's ability to direct company resources to complete projects and reach goals in relation to the costs incurred in achieving these objectives.

Successful cost containment is held in high regard when senior executives evaluate the performance of managers. Reaching goals with cost efficiency earns managers high respect—and, often, higher compensation. However, reaching objectives while also blowing up a tight budget wins no senior management friends.

The driving component of all for-profit businesses—increase revenue and reduce expenses—mandates that managers—at all levels—be measured by similar overall benchmarks. Therefore, managers are also driven to direct both sides (revenue and cost) of the equation with equal fervor and commitment.

Leaders

Leaders “develop” people and relationships that motivate others to achieve employer goals and objectives. They often share visions of success, create employee loyalty, and build effective communication bridges that motivate others to succeed.

Building strong relationships that promote dedication and commitment from others, leaders can often maximize their expertise by partially “cloning” themselves. Like strong athletic coaches, military officers, and public servants, they often inspire, motivate, and infuse a winning spirit in others.

Manager Vs Leader Comparisons

People often define the difference in simple terms. Managers have subordinates, while leaders have followers. Others believe that managers focus on stability and consistency, while leaders target change.

A slightly different picture painted by some experts describes managers as being more concerned with formal authority than leaders, who depend on personal charisma to achieve success. In the critical decision area, some believe that managers “make” decisions and leaders “facilitate” decisions.

The most telling distinction involves their perceived concentrations. Widely held beliefs (usually more feeling than scientific) contend that managers primarily focus on “work,” the project or objective at hand, while leaders focus on “people,” concentrating on motivating the “team” or individuals to achieve high performance.

The Bottom Line

The best managers and leaders both achieve goals and objectives consistently. There remains little difference in the quality of results. The real difference is in technique and focus.

Therefore, should you focus on becoming a manager or a leader? Before making any conscious decisions, consider some factors that pertain to you alone. Ask yourself questions similar to the following suggestions.

• Do I naturally focus on the job at hand or the people who need to complete the project?
• Am I more comfortable at completing a puzzle than designing one?
• At my workplace, do I seek out risk and challenge or comfort and control?
• How do I view “rules”? Do I enjoy making or breaking them?
• Do I like expressing passion or do I prefer exercising control?

The most difficult question: Can you be a manager AND a leader? The answer is “Yes.” These roles are not mutually exclusive. Focus and time management should be massaged, however, to learn and fill both roles.

Managers, focusing primarily on work, should allocate more time to the human element and building relationships. Leaders should reallocate additional time to the work details (memos, report evaluation, correspondence, and planning activities) they often discount. This reallocation can become a perfect balance of manager and leader to achieve goals and objectives.

A word of caution: Some leadership qualities are often the result of your DNA as much as your intellect and dedication. While the oft used phrase, “leaders are born, not made,” has proven only selectively correct, some leadership traits are more difficult to learn if your personality is in conflict. For example, some fabulous accounting and financial professionals might fail miserably if placed in sales; some effective managers (typically with learned expertise) might not excel at charismatic leadership.

If you are a natural leader, you can learn and perfect effective manager skills through study and experience. Don’t become concerned if you’re new to the workforce or considering changing professions or industries. First, everyone needs to develop managerial and leadership skills, as will you when given the opportunity. Second, learned management and leadership skills are usually transferable to any industry. Both managers and leaders typically enjoy challenging and profitable careers.