“First, Let’s Fire All Managers” by Gary Hamel

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Table of Contents

Article Summary
Theories and Concepts in Article
Self-Management as Proven Concept
Article Response
Conclusion
References

The article “First, Let’s Fire All Managers” by Gary Hamel explores the case of the Morning Star company as an example of an unusual and efficient approach to management. This paper aims to assess the contents of the article and relate them to the concepts and theories encountered in my studies.

Article Summary

“First, Let’s Fire All Managers” covers the management strategy used by the Morning Star tomato processing company. Their approach is unique since the firm fully relies on the self-management by the employees themselves. There is no hierarchy and no bosses aside from one director. The company uses a system of self-determined goals and missions to coordinate the efforts of individuals and work groups. Each employee, or as they are called at Morning Star “colleague,” drafts his own work plan and consults his co-workers to ensure he is contributing as much as possible. The progress of the personal mission is tracked by the other members of the group to ensure that there is no laziness or overspending. The whole system is held together by cooperation and judgments of the field workers who manage to organize efficiently and bring the company immense financial success each year. The founder of the company states that using such an innovative approach allowed him to promote cooperation, lessen the politicking and backstabbing, and ensure that the workers make rational decisions much quicker. Plus, the system effectively nullifies the management expenses (Hamel, 2011).

Theories and Concepts in Article

The key concepts covered in the article are the mission, vision, and value which are described in chapter four of the course book (Carpenter, Bauer, & Erdogan, 2010). The author describes how personal missions allow the employees to organize the workflow without the need for constant supervision. The article also describes the overall vision that the founder had when forming the company in an unorthodox fashion and the values that prevent some recruits from integrating into the structure of Morning Star.

Self-Management as Proven Concept

Actually, the first company relying on self-management was founded in the middle of the 20^th century by the entrepreneur W.L. Gore. He used the system to great success forming a setup with just three managers (Shipper & Manz, 1993). So this organizational practice was tried and proven to be efficient even before the advent of Morning Star. It has been overlooked by most managers over the years since implementing it is difficult, and the benefits are not immediately evident.

Article Response

I think self-management is an amazing opportunity for many companies to reorganize and streamline their workflow in a way which will allow them to increase efficiency dramatically. It is a real shame that the method is overlooked by many leaders and companies. The reasons are quite understandable: building a self-management company is difficult, requires serious commitment, and only pays off in a long run. Even though I would love to use a similar approach in my practice, the very culture of my company is based on the hierarchical relationships. In my opinion, it is impossible to implement the self-management system without a company-wide shift in values.

Conclusion

The approach described in the article is an opportunity for any company to create an environment in which the workers will be driven to perform better by their own aspirations and life goals, without the need for oppressive management networks and constant supervision. However, these incredible results can only be achieved through dedication and patience.

References

Carpenter, M., Bauer, T., & Erdogan, B. (2010). Principles of Management. Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota Libraries Publishing.

Hamel, G. (2011). First, Let’s Fire All Managers. Harvard Business Review, 2-13.

Shipper, F. & Manz, C. C. (1993). Employee Self-Management without Formally Designated Teams: An Alternative Road to Empowerment. Organizational Dynamics 20(3), 48-61.

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“First, Let’s Fire All Managers” by Gary Hamel

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