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The peter principle4/10/2023 ![]() Once this is done, effective senior managers should then try to identify and deal with the sometimes subtle techniques adopted by their more junior managers to disguise their incompetence. ![]() But understanding this type of managerial incompetence is only the first step. What can be done about this? Especially if the incompetence is at a managerial level? The authors indicated that one of the most important aspects of the Peter Principle is the idea of unconscious incompetence. Both for those people in any organization ‘accomplishing’ work, and for any responsible senior manager. … work is accomplished by those employees who have not yet reached their level of incompetence. If eventually all employees reach a level of incompetence, who then is being effective and productive? Again, the clue comes in the authors’ own words: One implication of the Peter Principle should be of particular interest to all stakeholders in an organization. In a hierarchy every employee tends to rise to his level of incompetence.Īlthough perhaps a little dated, and possibly even written with tongue in cheek, their book still contains some useful insights. In essence, this principle is summed up by their own words: Their central argument became known as ‘The Peter Principle’. In the late 1960’s, Laurence Peter and co-writer Raymond Hull powerfully captured this dilemma in their book “The Peter Principle”. Worse, they may be aware of it and actively disguise it! ![]() They may be ignorant of their behaviour and of its impact on the organization and its people. The problem is that all too often, these people are just no good at what they’re promoted to do: they can’t manage. It may be too easy to promote people because of their technical expertise, their personality or their ability to ‘get along’ – with others or with systems. There is no point being nice if organizational objectives are not being met and jobs are risk. However it’s still important that managers are effective. Look after your colleagues and they will look after your customers and your organization. How many of us have nice, easy-going but essentially ineffective managers? A basic tenet of this site is that we endorse a humanist approach to management. Poor as this management approach may be, at least it has the benefit of being relatively easy to spot! We’ve addressed ways to deal with this type of management in articles such as: Manage Your Boss and The Value of a Good Manager.įar too often though, poor management comes in a more affable guise. Professor Bob Sutton refers to the dangers such managers can pose to organizations in his excellent book The No Asshole Rule. Such managers can be seen as difficult to get on with. ![]() Spotting these techniques is perhaps the first step in dealing with poor management.ĭifficulties at work can arise from a wide range of factors, but what if the problem is specifically poor management? Sometimes poor managers disguise their lack of ability with aggression, defensiveness, aloofness, negativity or an authoritarian approach. Here we discuss some of Laurence Peter’s excellent insights, based on his famous ‘ Peter Principle‘ – that people tend to be promoted until they reach a job which they can’t really manage. We explore the subtle techniques poor managers sometimes adopt to substitute other activities for the work they should be doing. How can you spot a manager who is not up to the job? Can the ‘Peter Principle’ be used as a bad boss early warning system? We think so. ![]()
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