Within organizations you will have managers of managers, examples are the following relationships;

  • CEO manages 5 Executive Vice Presidents
  • Executive VP manages 8 Directors
  • Director manages 10 Program Coordinators
  • Program Coordinator manages 30 front line staff

Ensuring that those in managerial leadership are effectively exercising their responsibility to manage staff is a key accountability.

For example the CEO is accountable for the work of the 5 EVP level staff. The CEO must determine the effectiveness of her direct subordinates (the EVP) in exercising their managerial leadership.

This accountability of the Manager to ensure that subordinates are working to their highest capacity is the process that holds the hierarchy together.

Below are questions to consider about key systems and processes that all managers must answer to ensure that every one of their subordinate managers are doing consistently and effectively. No manager is exempt from doing these things.

  1. Is the manager regularly meeting with immediate subordinates in team working sessions?
  2. Is the manager setting the context of the work, and regularly updating it?
  3. Are manager-led two-way planning discussions going on?
  4. Is just in time QQTR task assignments occurring?
  5. Does the manager engage in personal effectiveness discussions and coaching?
  6. Do the manager’s evaluation of applied capability of subordinates equilibrate with the judgments of their own subordinates by the manager’s colleagues?
  7. Is there evidence of good selection and induction (orientation) procedures, and effective de-selection judgment and disciplinary action when necessary?

Each of the above questions are requisite in Manager to Subordinate Manager performance evaluations.

How do you gather this information in a way that is accurate? Click to find out…

*Questions are found in Elliot Jaques (1998) Requisite Organization page pair 114

How does your organization currently evaluate the effectiveness of managers? Could your team and you benefit from management who are able to effectively drive results and develop systems that ensure everyone does their best work and loves the work they do? Contact Mike to discuss making that happen.

michael cardus is create-learning