• A good manager is a person who knows something and pretends to know everything but good at making other people work on their jobs to get the anticipated results - Madhavan Gopalachary.
Introduction -
In many performance driven organizations, the pay scales can be overlapping, also called as Broadbanding in USA. The main characteristic of Broadbanding is that people at lower levels draw a higher salary than the persons supervising them. It may appear to be unfair but has a sound rationale behind it.
Broadbanding -
In the early stages of industrial revolution and scientific management before the human relations school became prominent, the generally accepted norm was that the pay should be higher as one progress in the organizational hierarchy. A person promoted to a level of supervisor expected a higher pay than the highest paid skilled worker and so on. It became a matter of right and prestige to demand a higher salary than people reporting to you. It also appeared logical. Very soon organizations realized that some roles, though not high in the hierarchy, were more important and valuable than the roles higher up in the ladder. This problem was overcome by devising overlapping pay scales. The pay scales were in broad bands with the lower scale of the upper level being lower than the upper scale of the lower level. There is some overlap between the various salary bands.
The financial consultants, analysts, traders and the likes in the merchant banking industry are not very high in the organizational hierarchy. However, the minimum pay, allowances, commissions and incentives at this level exceeds 500,000 dollars or even more. The Branch Managers supervising these people start at a package of around 150,000 dollars. But, if the guys are good at managing, motivating and guiding people, they earn in millions later.
In Walt Disney Company run restaurants in their theme parks, an excellent server earns 80,000 dollars + tips of around 20,000 per annum, whereas the manager of the restaurant gets around 40,000 dollars and no tips.
In the police service all over USA and many other developed countries, the best officers on the beat and detectives earn more than their sergeants and captains. It is not a healthy trend as it may lead to corruption and inefficiency at higher levels. In my humble opinion, Broadbanding is not suitable for Government jobs.
There are some very few and extreme cases of companies paying their best managers less than their star salesmen. If you are one of the conventional managers who expects more pay than the people reporting to you, don't join such companies. You will be booted out unceremoniously. Such companies value their star salesmen more than their managers.
All the above anomalies are due to Broadbanding of pay scales.
Advantages of Broadbanding -
1. It rewards excellence at every level. An excellent waiter or a cantankerous but an excellent chef is more valuable than an ordinary restaurant manager. In some owner driven small and medium sized businesses, where professionalism is not valued much, the so called managers are expendable and the owners can take over or appoint their relatives or cronies for such positions. The main jobs of such managers in SMBs is to spy on people and report to the big boss.
2. The biggest advantage is people do not have to climb the ladder to get more pay. First, they may not have the managerial and people skills. Second, they may not be interested in such positions. There are many people who like their existing jobs and prefer to continue in it. As long as they maintain their job excellence, there is no reason as to why they should be kicked up.
Disadvantages of Broadbanding -
1. It reduces initiative, drive and the craving to learn something beyond one's own specialty.
2. It reduces risk taking ability.
3. Specialists will normally avoid taking responsibility in areas beyond their own. Specialists rarely commit themselves and will lead you round and round around the garden path. They will always come up with some excuses in case of failure, which cannot be challenged because you do not know the subject as well as them. As a result, it is difficult to pin them down and make them accountable.
Why managers should be always paid more? -
The answer is very simple. It is more difficult to make others work. Poor managers end up doing the work of subordinates and complain of overwork, hyperacidity and peptic ulcers. I have come across so called managers doing the clerical work of their subordinates under the guise that mistakes are made and it is easier to do it themselves rather than correct the mistakes. That is management at its worst and it is a shame. Some start interfering with the jobs of specialists without a clue on what it is all about. The result is disaster.
My definition of a good manager is a person who knows something and pretends to know everything but good at making other people work on their jobs to get the anticipated results. As a manager, it is not necessary to know everything. You should know how to ask the right questions and get the right answers. You should be able to spot the bull shitters in a jiffy. After that you must take decisions and get them implemented quickly. That is all to management. Management is pure common sense.
© Copyright. May 26, 2008. Without prejudice. All rights reserved.
Broadbanding or Overlapping Pay Scales - To learn more about this author, visit Madhavan T Gopalachary's Website.
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Madhavan T Gopalachary
(Visit Madhavan's Website)
Madhavan Gopalachary, nick name "madgopes"
(g pronounced as in go) given by IIT
classmates, is a Mechanical Engineer and
an alumnus of Indian Institute of
Technology, Madras having passed out
specializing in IC Engines &
Thermodynamics.
He has nearly 35 years of experience in
the Corporate World. He started off as a
trainee and handled sales, marketing,
manufacturing, product management, profit
center management, strategic planning and
corporate development including R & D in
various organizations and at various
levels before becoming a CEO. His last two
professional assignments were at CEO level
before embarking to start management
consultancy business on January 01, 1998.
He has worked for British, Swedish MNCs as
well as very large Indian business houses.
He has spent a large portion of his time
from June 1998 till date in East African
Countries practicing as an independent
Management Consultant.
More details can be obtained at the
following web sites:
mmg.name
/mtg.html;
mmgconsu
lting.biz/
Madhavan's articles can be accessed at www.madgopes.com
.
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