Line managers in the United States and Britain were given a failing grade at a conference in London in April, where an “under-management epidemic” was identified as a threat to productivity and staff morale. The findings that gave rise to the description have resonated in several fields, particularly macroergonomics, which specializes in the organizational processes affecting worker performance.
Explaining the “Under-Management Epidemic,” Dr. Carolyn Martin told an international conference organized by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) that managers have found themselves spending more time managing balance sheets than people. A trainer and speaker for RainmakerThinking Inc., which conducts “boot camps” for managers in the United States, she blamed the stripping out of tiers of management and the new target-driven focus of companies for leaving the workforce under-managed. “Today’s managers have more on their plates than ever before,” she said.
In a later interview with Ergonomics Today