tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22571319.post117371049173837598..comments2023-06-18T10:03:39.982-05:00Comments on Gregorian Rants: Did you ever wonder what Carbondale want to be when it grows up?PeterGhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13362919400474969329noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22571319.post-1173804074823298822007-03-13T12:41:00.000-05:002007-03-13T12:41:00.000-05:00I like the idea that there are 3 levels of managem...I like the idea that there are 3 levels of management decisions -<BR/>The manager decides and doesn't ask for opinions.<BR/>The manager thinks he knows what to do and asks people if they agree.<BR/>Something needs to be done and the manager allows the people doing the work to decide what to do.<BR/><BR/>Personally, I like to push decisions down into the organization as far as possible. It is a form of management failure when management makes too many decisions.<BR/><BR/>In software companies, when managers start to push decisions that are wrong into the staff, people just quit and go elsewhere.<BR/><BR/>A big problem with tenure is that you get tied to bad employers forever. Any rational person has to shutdown instead of taking it personally.<BR/><BR/>The ideas that a university can go hire a manager from outside is a maybe. I can't just switch and run a restaurant very easily, I don't have the expertise. University professors can't switch to city government either, most lack expertise. I agree a great manager would be better then a average manager for SIU, but I'm not sure there are great managers who don't have PhD's available for SIU the first day. You would have to hire and train, and that is against SIU culture.PeterGhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13362919400474969329noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22571319.post-1173801364864121932007-03-13T11:56:00.000-05:002007-03-13T11:56:00.000-05:00Well, I think that's what happens when you hire ac...Well, I think that's what happens when you hire academics to be managers. They're great at what they know, which is their subject, whether it is math, or chemistry, or art, or whatever. Why does anyone think they'd be a good manager? Some of these guys don't even work in a classroom very much, they do research all the time. And that's great, but doing research doesn't make good managers. So, given that, do we hire trained managers to run the place? Oh gawd, the faculty would have cow...especially since trained manager would not put up the stuff that goes on at a university. For instance, it seems all decisions are made by a committee.. In the real world managers make the decisions, the workers either follow or get out of the way. Well, at SIUC faculty are unionized, perhaps we're one step closer to the manager - employee relationship. This shared governance thing would never fly in the real world.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22571319.post-1173763824772357792007-03-13T01:30:00.000-05:002007-03-13T01:30:00.000-05:00I was hoping to discuss what we wanted to be in th...I was hoping to discuss what we wanted to be in the future, but let's take a crack at Fraydog's question. <BR/><BR/>Any organization is about people. Under Morris, SIU was run as a dictatorship. When Morris fell, there really wasn't a replacement ready to step in and no one from the outside was going to keep all the balls in the air. A really tough situation.<BR/><BR/>I'm too young to remember what happened then, but let me write the legend. The next leader of SIU stepped into the void created by Morris's departure and thought the president's job was to be a dictator. The problem was that only Morris had the accomplishments to be allowed to do this without challenge.<BR/><BR/>The morale of everyone at the university was slowly drained away through a series of decisions. For example, the "Durge Purge" in 1974 was similar to successful companies first big layoff, you never get the feeling back after management does something so stupid. The chance of real greatness went softly into the night.<BR/><BR/>There is a good speech that I have put in here before http://blog.guykawasaki.com/2006/06/the_art_of_the_.html<BR/>One of the deep things he says is that, "A performers hire A performers, B performers hire C performers, who hire D performers and pretty soon the whole organization is full of Z performers. As SIU has settled in hire people who were more average, it becomes self selecting in the wrong way.<BR/><BR/>If organizations are about the people, I think the only way to make it better is to hire and manage better.<BR/><BR/>The answer at SIU is always, always, manage better. If you stepped into SIU's Presidency in 1970, hopefully you would understand it was a magical place on the way up. Your job was to not screw it up by throwing your weight around to much.PeterGhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13362919400474969329noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22571319.post-1173762010541217882007-03-13T01:00:00.000-05:002007-03-13T01:00:00.000-05:00Well if you took over as President from Delyte Mor...Well if you took over as President from Delyte Morris in 1970, what do you think should have been done with SIU? I'm sure you know from growing up here and listening to your father.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com