Middle Management Blues

Training professionals is a tricky business.   Around here the daydream scenario (for both the professionals and management, strangely enough) is a week in Orlando (or Vegas , yeah, Vegas, baby) on a subject that is somewhat germane but with a outfit that knows that half the attendees come in with a hangover in the morning and the other half will be on the golf course (or …) right after lunch.   The professionals all want a boondoggle like this but never get it.   Management thinks their professionals treat any training this way, but few actually do.   Usually it is the weasels who eventually become managers who screw off, so I guess we can close that loop. A manager gets that faraway look in his eyes when the subject of training arises.   In abstract, training could do wonders for his department.   One can see him wistfully thinking of the day when all his people know every detail of any possible permutation of a days events, and do all the hard labor to...

I would imagine there are many organizations that spend a good deal of management’s time and effort in promoting a “team” or “family” atmosphere. My organization spends its idle time in related pursuits. Fridays tend to be low-key since much of the maintenance department works four-tens (M-Th). Recently management made the decision to hold “town hall” meetings every Friday morning in an effort to bring us closer together. They bought motivational books and handed them out, and unleashed a new vision statement that showed an awkward attempt to promote “family” and “relating with integrity”. The high-level managers have been taking turns “teaching” these concepts, which takes about half the time allotted, and then they spend the remainder going around the room asking for feedback from the attendees. As I am a professional cynic, I did not have any kind thoughts when it came time for me to share my views. On the other hand, I have just an inkling of hope each time that mgmt is ...