What is the difference between management and leadership? It is a question that has been
asked more than once and also answered in different ways. The biggest difference between
managers and leaders is the way they motivate the people who work or follow them, and
this sets the tone for most other aspects of what they do.
Many people, by the way, are both. They have management jobs, but they realize that you
cannot buy hearts, especially to follow them down a difficult path, and so act as leaders
too.
Managers have subordinates
By definition, managers have subordinates – unless their title is honorary and given as a
mark of seniority, in which case the title is a misnomer and their power over others is other
than formal authority.
Authoritarian, transactional style
Managers have a position of authority vested in them by the company, and their
subordinates work for them and largely do as they are told. Management style is
transactional, in that the manager tells the subordinate what to do, and the subordinate does
this not because they are a blind robot, but because they have been promised a reward (at
minimum their salary) for doing so.
Work focus
Managers are paid to get things done (they are subordinates too), often within tight
constraints of time and money. They thus naturally pass on this work focus to their
subordinates.
Seek comfort
An interesting research finding about managers is that they tend to come from stable home
backgrounds and led relatively normal and comfortable lives. This leads them to be
relatively risk-averse and they will seek to avoid conflict where possible. In terms of
