Management or Leadership
How do you tell the difference?
SAN ANTONIO, Texas (Feb. 4 2015) — Leadership and management are both important to business success, but they are not the same thing, Rick LaPlante emphasized to attendees during a Cattlemen’s College® session Feb. 4 in San Antonio, Texas. Cattlemen’s College, hosted by Zoetis for the 22nd year, was a precursor to the 2015 Cattle Industry Convention & NCBA Trade Show.
“Leadership is about change — creating the environment for change,” Rick LaPlante said.“The challenge with leadership and management is that people think they are the same thing, but they are fundamentally different,” LaPlante said. To help those in attendance understand the differences, he described management as “dealing with current complexities.” For example, he pointed out, beef producers “manage” grazing, herd health and breeding strategies for their operations.
“Leadership is about change — creating the environment for change,” LaPlante said.
In short, LaPlante said, management is about predictability and reliability in managing systems, whereas leadership is about change and movement among people and “creating a reality that wouldn’t likely exist without your intervention.”
LaPlante, who had a successful 19-year career with Microsoft, often worked with Microsoft employees on defining and developing management and leadership roles. He currently runs a cattle company in Wyoming with his wife and has become a popular speaker at ag industry events, sharing his message about recognizing the important differences between management and leadership.
“You don’t wake up one day and you are a leader. It doesn’t happen by osmosis, which many ranchers appear to think,” he said. He emphasized that leadership is about being intentional with your actions, your time and your planning for the future, and added, “Strategic thinking is probably the most under-taught skill.”
He continued, “We (society) teach the skills that have value (i.e., management skills), but we don’t spend a lot of time teaching leadership, and we should.” He encouraged those in attendance to “schedule time for leadership” to develop a vision and strategy to move their businesses forward for the future.
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