Leaders and Managers

I am participating in a NACM Work Group that is updating the CORE Leadership Competency (Leadership – NACM Core). This is part of NACM’s commitment to continuously review and update the 13 CORE Competencies (Core Essentials – NACM Core) to ensure they remain current and useful to the court community.

A key part of the Leadership Competency is a discussion of “what is leadership?” What are the essential elements of leadership, and what makes an effective leader? How does this differ from being a manager? The Work Group is considering a wealth of information on this topic, and I am recalling an e-newsletter I read from Steve Gutzler (www.stevegutzler.com) from last July that did a nice job of contrasting the “common distinctions between a manager and a leader”:

1. The manager administers, the leader innovates.
2. The manager maintains, the leader develops.
3. The manager accepts reality, the leader investigates it.
4. The manager focuses on systems, the leader focuses on people.
5. The manager has a short-range view, the leader has a long-range perspective.
6. The manager relies on control, the leader inspires trust.
7. The manager imitates, the leader originates.
8. The manager accepts the status quo, the leader challenges it.
9. The manager does things right, the leader does the right thing.
10. The manager asks how, the leader asks what and why.

As Mr. Gutzler emphasized in his article, it is important to remember that we need both leaders and managers. This is particularly true in times of crisis, such as the current pandemic, associated economic havoc, and the impacts of both on the judicial system. It is imperative that all of us involved in administering the courts step up to apply the factors listed above to rise to the challenge.

It would be great if others with further thoughts on this subject (or Leadership in general) would share them via comments to this blog post, or directly to me for consideration in the NACM Work Group’s revision of the Leadership Competency. Thank you in advance for any help!

Published by Norman Meyer (He-Him)

After 38 years as a trial court administrator in the state and federal courts in the U.S., Norman continues to write, teach, and otherwise participate in judicial administration activities world-wide. In particular, he is active in the International Association for Court Administration (IACA) as a past Regional Vice President and Advisory Board member, in the National Association for Court Management (NACM) as a Past President (having received NACM's Award of Merit), and as an Associate of the Justice Speakers Institute. Norman has extensive experience working on international Rule of Law projects, particularly in the Russian Federation, Serbia, Ukraine, Moldova, and Albania. Norman is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the University of New Mexico (Political Science and Russian Studies), and he received the Master of Science in Judicial Administration from the University of Denver College of Law. View all posts by Norman Meyer (He-Him)

2 thoughts on “Leaders and Managers”

Suzanne James says:

January 14, 2021 at 4:47 pm

Norm, interesting article and very important work. Thank you for your third decade of work on the Competencies! Suzanne James

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1. Norman Meyer (He-Him-His) says:
  
  January 15, 2021 at 9:14 am
  
  Thanks, Suzanne.
  
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