Ken Blanchard was born on May 6, 1939, an American author and management expert. His book The One Minute Manager, co-authored with Spencer Johnson, has sold more than 13 million copies and been translated into 37 languages.
Ken Blanchard is the author of more than 30 other best-selling books, including Raging Fans: A Revolutionary Approach to Customer Service (1993), Leadership and the Manager in One Minute: Improving Effectiveness Through Situational Leadership (1985), Enthusiastic! Turn to the people" (1997), "Great job! The Power of Positive Relationships" (2002) and "Moving to a Higher Level" (2006).
Blanchard is the "spiritual chief" of the Ken Blanchard Company, an international management training and consulting organization that he founded with his wife in 1979 in San Diego, California.
Ken Blanchard is a Trustee Emeritus of Cornell University and a visiting professor at Cornell University's School of Hospitality Management.
Books (6)
Leadership: to the heights of success
Be a top level leader. Lead people by inspiring them to create a high-performing organization. Is it possible to achieve this?
Ken Blanchard and his colleagues have been helping simply good companies become great and, importantly, remain so for decades. This book brings together for the first time the knowledge of outstanding leadership and unique experience of international business.
Without a doubt, the book will inspire you to rise to new heights of leadership and carry others along with you.
One Minute Manager at Work
Anyone can become a ONE MINUTE MANAGER! The phenomenally successful One Minute Manager program took America by storm, becoming a #1 New York Times bestseller and finding use not only in the business world, but also among housewives, students and professionals - anyone who wants to effectively manage their lives. .
The addition to this program offered here will help you apply the secrets of the One Minute Manager - ONE MINUTE GOAL SETTING, ONE MINUTE PRAISE and ONE MINUTE REMEDIATIONS - to REAL SITUATIONS so that you can begin implementing them into your life immediately!
One Minute Manager and Situational Leadership
In clear and simple language, this book teaches managers the art of Situational Leadership - a simple system that overrides the standard management rule of treating all employees the same.
You will understand why in matters of management it is so important to take an individual approach to each subordinate, to know when to delegate authority, when to help and when to order, how to choose the right leadership style in relation to a particular employee, and how One Minute Management techniques will allow you manage people better and motivate them better. This wonderful, practical book is an invaluable primer on how to take a creative, personalized approach to bringing out the best in your people and achieving the best bottom line results for your organization.
The One Minute Manager Builds a High-Performing Team
The concept of a high-performing team is now more important than ever to the successful functioning of organizations. Ken Blanchard teamed up with Donald Carew and Eunice Parisi-Carew to show you that every team goes through four stages of development on the path to becoming an effective team: orientation, frustration, integration, and production. The authors then show how a manager can help any team achieve peak performance quickly and painlessly.
This valuable addition to the One Minute Manager Library is an essential tool for anyone who works with a team and wants to build an effective team.
Value management
The book “Value Management” describes the culture of organizational and managerial work, when strategy, processes and people are subordinated to a common set of values, united by a common attitude to problems and common goals.
Increasing competition today requires every company to build success on the basis of operational efficiency. When an organization has a clear understanding of its mission and its values, it has a strong basis for evaluating existing management practices and aligning them with its clearly stated mission and values.
Secret. What Great Leaders Know and Do
Sooner or later, any boss, be it the president of an international corporation or the leader of a volunteer group, asks the question: what is the secret of great leaders?
Telling an entertaining story about the work of an ordinary department of one company, Ken Blanchard and Mark Miller answer this difficult question.
Reader comments
Novel/ 10.18.2015 The books are just super... I couldn’t even think that it works... I checked it..! Works!!!
Vladimir/ 02/17/2015 excellent book. very productive!
Konstantin/ 08/20/2013 Many years ago, when I just became a supervisor, my supervisor gave me a series of these books.
Now I am a top manager of a large and successful company. Most of the employees who were under my command reached career heights! Why? because I learned the “ABC of a manager” (One Minute). And every minute I put this method into practice.
Zakharov Alexander/ 10.10.2012 Simply a unique book - THE SECRET - the author competently revealed simple things, “opened my eyes” to many things. Thanks to the site administration for making such books available.
Tatiana/ 08/31/2012 I thought a lot about how people achieve quite great heights... They are ordinary people... where does all this potential come from? And after reading the book “The Secret”, I realized that I need to improve in everything and constantly! Have a goal and a dream!!! This is my first impetus for development... Thanks to these great people!!!
Ivan/ 08/18/2012 So far I have only read one Book by the Author - The Secret - Depth of thought, lightness and simplicity of presentation, great love for people - they inspire you to develop yourself and help other people. A huge thank you to everyone who participated in the creation of this book.
Regards, Ivan.
Student/ 02/12/2012 Thank you very much for posting the books!!
I read about situational leadership and wanted to learn more, thanks to you I’ll do it now)) Thanks again!
Guest/ 01/10/2011 The books are very useful and practical. I am a business owner myself - I recommend it! Can be used in our CIS realities. Thanks for the books and to the author and creator of this site!
Natalia/ 08/03/2010 The book "The Secret" is very useful, accessible, easy to read. The essence is stated quite simply. I liked it very much, I recommend it.
Andrey/ 06/09/2010 Excellent books! I have two of them in my personal library.
Victoria/ 05/11/2010 Secret. What Great Leaders Know and Do.
An amazing book: lots of practical advice, easy language and excellent presentation of the material. I recommend:)
In the book, monkeys do not mean people, not projects, not even the problems themselves. Monkeys refer to moves in implementing a project and solving a problem.
4 rules for managing monkeys:
Rule 1. Description. The next moves are being specified.
(This rule means that the boss and subordinate should not separate until all the moves of the subordinate to complete the task are described
Rule 2. Belonging. Each monkey is assigned to its owner.
(This rule means that the dialogue between subordinates and the boss should not stop until each monkey has been handed over to its owner. It is necessary to delegate tasks as much as possible and keep only those monkeys that only I can handle.
“The best way to develop a sense of responsibility in people is to give them responsibility” (Must remember:))
Rule 3. Insurance. Every monkey must be insured.
(This rule considers two insurance poles:
“Suggest first, then act”
“Act first, then propose”
First-level insurance is intended for tasks in which an employee may make a mistake and the error will entail serious consequences. In this case, it is necessary to require from subordinates a plan of action, steps, which must be approved before starting work. It is necessary to have a chance to blow out the match before the building can burn down.
Level 2 insurance is for monkeys that subordinates can handle on their own without intervention from their boss.
In this case, the insurance policy can be changed based on the principles:
"Do not interfere as much as possible"
"Intervene as needed"
Rule 4. Control.
(For each monkey, the task must be assigned a time and place of control)
Then the book talks about the next stage of development, “Delegation of Authority,” (the essence of which is that subordinates not only work on their monkeys, but also distribute them themselves), three categories of working time, and training. I won’t write about this, it’s better to read.
I liked the quotes from the book:
“The more you get rid of the monkeys of your subordinates, the more time you will have for your subordinates.”
“You’re like a pilot who brilliantly lands a plane on the wrong airfield.”
I also liked the phrase that a good leader is one you can do without, without whom the department can work independently, something like that.
The book contains seemingly obvious things, but while reading the book, I still understood that I was making some mistakes in managing the department. Now I will try to take the work of my department to a new level with the resources that I have.
In general, all managers and leads should definitely read the book. Easy to read, read it in an evening.
People who feel good achieve good results
What needs to be done to get people to work productively? How to get a person interested in working with enthusiasm? There are different people with different desires. Some people need money, others want to be provided for in terms of social protection.
Book Kenneth Blancher Emphasizes human psychology, it outlines a view of how to motivate productive work through the use of basic three practices - setting concise goals, praise and reprimands. A manager practicing this technique must adhere to the principle: “The best minute I spend is the minute spent on people.”
People are seen as one of the most basic resources of an organization, in which they need to invest for development and improvement. By developing the resource and applying the given management techniques in the organization, it is possible to achieve colossal results both for the company itself as a whole, for the products it creates, and for its internal background - motivating employees, reducing staff turnover, strengthening internal relationships. The result of using this technique is high productivity and quality of work performed.
Synergy of manager-subordinate relationships
Because the clock is ticking and time is running out. N.A.
For people to feel good, they must know how they work and what results they achieve. The strongest motivator for an employee is receiving feedback. Many managers practice feedback only at certain reference points - individual quarterly meetings, annual meetings. They accumulate everything over a long period of time and pour it on the subordinate. From Kenneth's point of view, it makes no sense to wait so long to give feedback and show where a person is right and where something needs to be changed. After all, the clock is ticking and time is running out. Something done incorrectly is lost in the jungle of completed work, the amount of “crutch” program code increases, motivation drops, people’s productivity decreases, because there is no understanding of how correctly a person is moving. We are talking here not about the goals achieved, but, to a greater extent, about the methods of achieving the goal. There is no synergistic effect between manager and subordinate. The subordinate needs to be shown each time in which direction he is moving, to correct it through feedback, and not to leave the person alone to make a decision about the effectiveness of his activities. Otherwise, he will draw conclusions on his own. Thus, one of the main motivators is feedback - constant awareness by the employee and manager of the work done.
Blancher's three whales
Blanchard bases his approach on three pillars:
- one-minute goals;
- one-minute praise;
- one-minute reprimands.
To understand the effectiveness of the proposed approach, let's look at the main goals and approach of each point.
One Minute Goals
One Minute Goal Setting is the main tool for productive work, whether we are talking about an employee who already knows how to do everything, or about an employee who is still learning. Kenneth Blanchard
One-minute goals are a figurative concept that includes the following points:
- the goal must be clear;
- the description of the goal should be brief and contain no more than 250 words;
- each goal is recorded on a separate “piece” of paper (in two copies, one is taken by the employee, the second remains for the manager);
- reading should not take more than one minute.
The process of working on one-minute goals consists of three steps:
- write down the agreed goal;
- determine one most optimal solution suitable for the purpose;
- daily monitoring of goals and progress.
To help keep the goal monitoring process in mind, Kenneth keeps a card on his person: “Take a minute: review your goals, review your metrics, check if your behavior is aligned with your goals.”
Kenneth Blachard's approach is closely related to agile approaches practiced by many IT teams, where goals are drawn up on cards, have short and clear formulations and take less than a minute to read and understand. Goals are reviewed daily and synchronized with team work.
Is there anything offered for the one-minute manager related to retrospectives or stand-ups? As it turns out, they exist here too; the Friday synchronization can be called a stand-up or a weekly retrospective, where achieved goals are checked and employee actions are adjusted if necessary.
One minute praise
Motto: “Help people realize their potential. Catch them doing something right."
Praise from a manager solves several important problems at once. First, the manager shows that he understands the issue being resolved by the employee, he is not alone, and his work is not left to chance. The second is the employee’s motivation, which is expressed in psychological support, giving a certain impulse that encourages the employee to take further action.
As practice shows, in most cases, managers catch their subordinates doing something wrong. And this is reflected in some negativity that accumulates in each individual employee. The complete opposite is the one-minute manager who catches on doing things right. One of Kenneth’s principles is that the more your subordinates succeed, the higher you climb the career ladder. You need to praise without delay; if you lose the moment, the effect will be much lower. In case an inexperienced person cannot do what is expected of him, the manager should not punish him, but return to one-minute target setting and make sure he understands what is expected of him.
The praise algorithm consists of the following points:
- Praise people immediately, without delay;
- Specifically say to your face what was done correctly;
- Say how it will help the organization or how nice it was for you;
- Pause to let the employee feel how pleased you are;
- Encourage your employee to achieve even greater success;
- Shake hands or otherwise make contact to make it clear that you support their work in the organization.
One-Minute Reprimands
If a subordinate makes a serious mistake, a One Minute Reprimand must inevitably follow.
The main idea: if a subordinate makes a serious mistake, he must inevitably follow one minute reprimand. Feedback from the manager should follow immediately. The employee must understand that the time has come for a reprimand; these are not ambiguous phrases, but a clear opinion about his work. It makes sense to reprimand only for an incorrect action. When reprimanding, you must preserve the employee’s identity, you must never hurt the person’s self-esteem, do not humiliate him, and only eliminate the wrong action.
The reprimand algorithm consists of the following points:
- Reprimand immediately after making a mistake;
- Say directly to your face what exactly was done wrong;
- Communicate how you feel about the error;
- Pause for a second to realize how you feel;
- You shake hands, say that you are on his side;
- Reminding him how highly you value him;
- Confirm that you have a good attitude towards the employee, but not about their work in this situation;
- You understand that when a reprimand is completed, it is closed forever.
Summarize
The figure below shows a classic diagram of subject-object interaction. We will consider the project manager as the subject, and the employee as the object.
From the point of view of a systems approach, it makes sense to reveal what processes take place in the subject of management, so that it becomes more clear what the subject is guided by when making certain decisions. Oval circles indicate global tasks: planning, accounting for facts, accounting for deviations. The process, as you can see, is cyclical and strongly depends on the feedback that comes from the control object. Lack of communication disrupts the process. It is obvious that in conditions of a changing external world, the adjustment should be almost continuous, within the agreed iterative time units.
The presented diagram is a classic management cycle consisting of 6 operations, which is used to design an organization’s management system and is well suited for designing/modeling similar situations, as discussed in this review.
MindMap for the book
Book "One Minute Manager" ( Kenneth Blanchard, "The One Minute manager"), which can be downloaded on the Internet, won the hearts of millions of Americans, showing how to effectively use their personal resources and achieve success while avoiding stress. Ken Blanchard did the impossible - he created a textbook that defines the possible degree of ease with which you should achieve your goal.
The peculiarity of this publication is that it is presented in the form of an allegorical story, which naturally tells how to get high results using the most important resource - your employees. It is addressed not to a specific circle of readers, like many works in the field of professional management, but to every person interested in achieving success.
Among the business luminaries who have been guided by this encyclopedia of modern management art for many years are such outstanding personalities as:
- Robert Davis, former president of the chemical corporationChevron;
- Joseph P. Viviano, PresidentHersheyChocolate";
- Charles Lee, Chairman and CEO of the CorporationGTE;
- James Brodhead, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the CorporationFloridaPowerandLight";
- David Jones, former chairman of the organizationTheTointChiefsStaff".
The One Minute Manager in action
According to Blanchard, the main task of every manager is the ability to effectively use human resources. This undisputed management guru proclaims the need for an individual approach to each employee. The publication “One Minute Manager” at a very decent level defines the tactics of behavior of a manager in a company, according to which a sufficient amount of attention should be paid to his employees, without spending a lot of time.
The book gives an idea of how important it is to be able to motivate subordinates and create conditions for rational delegation of authority. Here the reader will receive answers to the following questions:
- How to interest an employee in solving a problem?
- How can we make everyone more productive?
- How to create a team that can easily cope with any issue?
The author considers the principle “The best minute spent by me is the minute spent on people” to be the basis of any management. He focuses all his attention on human psychology, showing that within everyone lies enormous abilities that need to be revealed in time and directed to the benefit of the common cause.
Synergy of communication between boss and subordinate
Arguing on the topic of what the modern relationship between a company's rank-and-file staff and a manager should be like, Ken Blanchard comes to the only correct conclusion: constant feedback is necessary. Most managers, despite their high professionalism, focus their efforts on developing the company's strategy, concluding lucrative contracts and positioning in the market. However, we must not forget about the importance of communication with subordinates - after all, they are the ones who create the success of the company.
Typically, feedback in an enterprise occurs after the end of the reporting period. This happens once every quarter or year. But all this time, the boss recklessly allows his employees to independently solve current problems and draw certain conclusions, which significantly reduces the level of labor productivity in the company. People are not always able to objectively assess the state of affairs and find a way out of a difficult situation. Problems accumulate and by the time the annual report is signed, they can turn into a tsunami wave that will fundamentally destroy all employee motivation.
The essence of the main idea of the book “One Minute Manager,” which is a great pleasure to read online, is the need to find very small time resources every day for productive communication with subordinates.
“One Minute Goal Setting is the main tool for productive work, whether we are talking about an employee who already knows how to do everything, or about an employee who is still learning»
“Help people realize their potential. Catch them doing something right."
“If a subordinate makes a serious mistake, a One Minute Reprimand must inevitably follow.”
By competently operating such a small number of tools, a high-quality manager will certainly achieve success in managing the company.
To study the essence of the issue in more detail, you can analyze the diagram of the classic management cycle, which includes 6 operations. It fully reflects the algorithm of actions described by Blanchard.
To summarize, it should be noted the high value of the “One Minute Manager” in the development of the modern art of company management. The publication describes a high-quality approach to management practice in very accessible language. After all, everything ingenious, as we know, is simple.
The publication has been translated into Russian and is available for wide use. The book can be downloaded for free in the following formats:
apk, fb2 and epub for ipad and android. The one-minute manager is also available for download in a torrent file and as an audiobook.
One Minute Manager
Spencer Johnson
Ken Blanchard
This book details three practical management techniques. As you read, you'll discover some discoveries that will help you understand why these extremely simple methods work so well. Finally, you will understand how they can be applied to your own situation, and you will be able to: simplify your life as much as possible, get more done in less time, get rid of unnecessary stress, and achieve peace of mind. With the help of the One Minute Manager you can radically change your life. This system works quickly. It's simple. She works.
Kenneth Blanchard, Spencer Johnson
One Minute Manager
Translated from English by P. A. Samsonov according to the publication: THE ONE MINUTE MANAGER® by Kenneth Blanchard, Ph. D., Spencer Johnson, M. D., 1983.
© 1981, 1982 by Blanchard Family Partnership and Candle Communications Corporation
© Translation. Potpourri LLC, 2001
© Design. Potpourri LLC, 2013
One of the most unusual books on the bestseller list!
"New York Times"
I have given copies of this book to my boss, subordinates, other managers, my wife, and close friends. It is addressed to everyone – and that’s great!
Robert Davis, former president of the chemical company Chevron
Do you need one minute control? Yes!
"Working Woman"
The One Minute Manager has had a huge impact on how our company is run. We teach the principles in this book in our training and development programs so that they can be used in situations where two or more employees are interacting with each other. It is an example of a modern—and timeless—management style.
Joseph P. Viviano, President of Hershey Chocolate Company
Even after all these years, when I have a spare moment, I still pick up The One Minute Manager from my shelf to brush up on my management technique. I don't know of a better, easier-to-use management reference book.
Charles Lee, Chairman and CEO of GTE Corporation
The One Minute Manager has become a classic of business literature for its simplicity and comprehensiveness in its embrace of all the essential elements of a productive relationship between a manager and his people. Every businessman will benefit from this book.
James Brodhead, Chairman and CEO of Florida Power and Light Corporation
A critical attitude to work has become a leading management technique these days. The One Minute Manager's approach of rewarding good performance seems much more effective.
David Jones, former Chairman of The Joint Chiefs Staff
The One Minute Manager symbol—the image of one minute on the face of a modern digital watch—is meant to remind us that we must take at least one minute a day to face the people we manage. We must understand that they are our main resources.
Introduction
In this short story, we will introduce you to much of what we have learned about how people can better interact through our studies of medicine and behavioral science. By “best” we mean relationships in which people achieve high results and are satisfied with themselves, their organization and their employees.
The allegorical story "The One Minute Manager" is a simple compilation of what many wise people have taught us and what we have learned ourselves. We recognize the importance of these sources of wisdom. And we also know that the people who work under you will look to you for their source of wisdom.
Therefore, we believe that you will begin to apply the knowledge gleaned from this book in practice, in everyday management issues, following the recommendation of the ancient sage Confucius: “The essence of knowledge is to have it, to use it.”
We hope that you enjoy applying what you learn from The One Minute Manager, and that you and the people who work with you live healthier, happier, and more productive lives as a result.
Kenneth Blanchard, Ph.D.
Spencer Johnson, MD
Once upon a time there lived a smart young man who was looking for an effective manager.
He wanted to work for such a manager. He wanted to become such a manager.
Over many years of searching, he visited the most remote corners of the earth.
He visited small towns and the capitals of powerful countries.
He spoke with many leaders: government officials and military officers, construction foremen and corporate directors, university presidents and foundation administrators, store and restaurant managers, bank and hotel managers, men and women, young and old.
He visited a variety of offices: large and small, luxurious and squalid.
He saw the full spectrum of how some people control others.
But he didn't always like what he saw.
He had seen many “tough” managers whose organizations seemed to prosper while their employees suffered.
Some of their bosses thought they were good managers.
Many of their subordinates thought otherwise.
When visiting the offices of such “severe” managers, our young man asked: “What kind of manager would you call yourself?”
Their answers were almost the same.
“I’m an autocratic manager—I’m always in control of the situation,” they told him. “I am a results-oriented manager.” "Solid". "Realistic". "Thinking about profits."
He also met “nice” managers whose employees prospered while their companies suffered losses.
Some of their subordinates considered them good managers. Those to whom they themselves obeyed doubted this.
Asking these “nice” managers the same question, the young man heard:
"I am a democratic manager." “I’m a co-manager.” "Assistant Manager" "Sensitive". "Humane".
But he was not satisfied.
It seemed as if every manager in the world cared either only about results or only about people.
Managers who were only concerned with results were often called “autocratic,” while managers who cared about people were often called “democratic.”
The young man believed that each of these managers – both the “stern” autocrat and the “pleasant” democrat – were only partly effective. “It’s like being half a manager,” he thought.
He returned home tired and disappointed.
He could have given up his quest a long time ago, but he had one important advantage. He knew exactly what he was looking for.
“Effective managers,” he thought, “manage themselves and the people with whom they work so that their activities benefit both the organization and the employees.”
The young man looked everywhere for effective managers, but found only very few. And the few he found did not want to share their secrets with him. He was beginning to think that he might never find out what he was doing.
Page 2 of 4
an effective manager as such.
Then he began to hear wonderful stories about a special manager who - what an irony! - lived in a neighboring town. The young man wondered if these stories were true and, if true, whether this manager would be willing to tell him his secrets.
Curious, he called this special manager's secretary to set up a meeting. The secretary immediately connected him with the manager.
The young man asked the manager to see him. He replied: “Any time this week except Friday morning. Choose for yourself."
The young man chuckled to himself, deciding that this supposedly wonderful manager was simply crazy. Where have you heard of a manager being so available at any time? But the young man still decided to see him.
One Minute Manager
When the young man entered the manager’s office, he was facing the window. The young man coughed - the manager turned to him and smiled. He invited the young man to sit down and asked:
- How can I help you?
The young man replied:
– I would like to ask you a few questions about how you manage people.
The manager readily stated:
- Ask.
– Well, for starters, how regularly do you hold meetings with your subordinates?
“Once a week – on Fridays from 9 to 11. That’s why I couldn’t see you at this time,” the manager answered.
– What do you do at these meetings? – continued the young man.
“I listen to my people review the past week's accomplishments, discuss their problems, and decide what they still need to accomplish. Then we develop a plan and strategy for the next week.
– Are the decisions made at these meetings binding on you and your people? – the young man asked.
“Of course,” the manager replied. – Otherwise, what’s the point of taking them?
- So you are a manager-participant? – asked the young man.
“No,” answered the manager, “I am not a supporter of interference in decision-making processes; my people do it themselves.
– Then what is the point of these meetings?
- I already said it. Young man, please don't make me repeat myself. This is a waste of my time and yours. We are put here to get results. The goal of this organization is productivity. By being organized, we are able to be much more productive.
– Oh, so you understand the need for productivity. Then you are a manager who is more results-oriented than people-oriented,” the young man suggested.
- No! – the manager exclaimed, causing his interlocutor to flinch. “I hear this too often,” he rose to his feet and began to walk around the office. – How can you get results without people? I care about both results and people. People and results go hand in hand.
“Here, look at this,” the manager handed the visitor a card. “I always keep it on my desk as a reminder of one practical truth.”
People who feel good achieve good results.
While the young man looked at the card, the manager continued:
- Think for yourself. When do you work best? When do you feel good? Or when it's bad?
The young man nodded, beginning to understand the obvious.
“I achieve much more when I feel good,” he replied.
“Of course,” the manager agreed. - And all people are the same.
A new idea struck the young man and he raised his finger.
“So,” he said, “by helping people feel good, we become more productive.”
“Yes,” confirmed the manager. – However, it should be remembered that productivity is not only the amount of work done. It's also about quality. “He went to the window and said: “Young man, come here.”
He pointed to the cars moving down the street and asked:
– Do you see how many foreign cars are on the road?
“There are more and more of them every day.” I believe they are more economical and last longer,” the young man answered.
The manager nodded slowly and said:
- Exactly. So why do you think people buy foreign cars? Because American manufacturers don't make enough cars? Or is it because,” the manager continued without pause, “that they don’t produce cars of the quality that Americans want to see?”
“If you think about it,” the young man answered, “it’s really a question of quality and quantity.”
“Of course,” said the manager. – Quality means providing people with the products or services that they really want.
The manager stood at the window, lost in thought. He remembered not so long ago when his country provided technology that helped rebuild Europe and Asia. And I never ceased to be amazed at how America had fallen behind in productivity.
The young man brought the manager back to reality.
“I remembered the commercial on TV,” he said. - They showed a foreign car and the following lines floated above: “If you are going to buy a car in installments, do not buy a car that will not survive until the end of the payment period.”
The manager turned around and said:
“I'm afraid that's a very good summary.” And that's the whole point. Productivity is both quantity and quality.
They sat down on the sofa.
“And frankly, the best way to achieve both of these goals is through people.”
The young man's interest grew. He asked:
– You have already said that you are not an accomplice manager. How would you describe yourself?
“It’s as easy as shelling pears,” the manager answered without hesitation. – I am the One Minute Manager.
Surprise showed on the young man's face. He had never heard of the One Minute Manager.
The manager laughed:
– I am the One Minute Manager. I call myself that because it takes me very little time to get very big results from people.
Although the young man had talked to many managers, he had never heard such speeches. A one-minute manager is a person who achieves good results in a short time. It was hard to believe.
Seeing the doubt on the visitor's face, the manager said:
- You do not believe me? You don't believe that I'm a One Minute Manager?
“I must admit, it’s hard for me to even imagine,” answered the young man.
The manager said with a smile:
“Look, if you really want to know what kind of manager I am, you better talk to my people.”
The manager leaned over the telephone and said something. A few moments later, his secretary, Miss Metcalfe, entered the office and handed the young man a piece of paper.
“Here are the names, positions and telephone numbers of six people reporting to me,” explained the One Minute Manager.
– Who should I talk to? – asked the young man.
“Decide for yourself,” answered the manager. Choose any name. Talk to any or all of them.
– Who should I start with?
“I already told you that I don’t make decisions for other people,” the manager said firmly. - Decide for yourself.
He stood up and escorted the visitor to the door.
“You asked me not once, but twice, to make a very simple decision for you.” Frankly, young man, I think this is intrusiveness. Don't ask me
Page 3 of 4
repeat what I have already said. Either get started or continue your search elsewhere.
The visitor was amazed. He felt very awkward. The second pause seemed like an eternity to him.
Then the One Minute Manager looked the young man in the eyes and said:
– You want to learn more about managing people, and I like that. “He shook his guest’s hand.
“If after talking with these people you still have any questions,” he said friendly, “come again.” I appreciate your interest and desire to learn management. I really really want to give you the concept of the One Minute Manager. I once received it as a gift, and it changed my life. I want you to understand it properly. If you like this idea, you could become a One Minute Manager yourself someday.
“Thank you,” muttered the young man.
He left the manager's office in some confusion. When he passed by the secretary, she said understandingly:
– Judging by your confused look, you have already met our One Minute Manager.
The young man, still somewhat confused, responded:
- Maybe.
“I can help you,” said Miss Metcalfe. “I called these six of his subordinates. Five of them are here and they have agreed to talk to you. You may understand the One Minute Manager better after you talk to them.
The young man thanked her, looked at the list of subordinates and decided to talk to three of them: Mr. Trenel, Mr. Levy and Mrs. Brown.
First Secret: One Minute Goals
Entering Mr. Trenell's office, the young man saw a smiling middle-aged man in front of him.
“So you’ve already visited the old man.” Nice man, isn't he?
“I think so,” answered the young man.
– Did he tell you that he is the One Minute Manager?
- Certainly. Is this not true? – asked the young man.
- Can not say. I hardly see him.
“Are you saying that you never get help from him?” – the young man was amazed.
– Almost none, although we talk when he entrusts me with some new work. He calls it One Minute Goal Setting.
– One Minute Goal Setting – what is it? – asked the young man. – He told me that he is a One Minute Manager, but there was no talk about One Minute Goal Setting.
“This is one of the three secrets of One Minute Management,” Trenell replied.
- Three secrets? – the young man asked, burning with curiosity.
“Yes,” Trenell confirmed. – One Minute Goal Setting is the first of these secrets, the basis of One Minute Management. You see, in most organizations, if you ask people what they do and then ask their bosses the same question, you too often end up with two completely different lists. In some of the organizations where I worked, any connection between what I considered my job responsibilities and what my boss thought they were was purely coincidental. And I regularly found myself in the unpleasant position of not doing something - it never occurred to me that this was my job.
– Doesn’t that happen here? – asked the young man.
- No! - Trenel replied. “That doesn’t happen here.” The One Minute Manager always makes it clear what our responsibilities are and what we are responsible for.
- How he does it? – the young man asked.
“Effective,” Trenell answered with a smile.
“After he tells me what needs to be done,” Trenell began to explain, “or after we agree on what needs to be done, each goal is written down, taking up no more than one page.” The One Minute Manager believes that a goal and a plan to achieve it should be expressed in no more than 250 words. He insists that everyone should have time to read it in no more than a minute. He gets a copy, I get a copy, so we both have a clear idea of what needs to be done and track the process periodically.
– Do you have these one-page statements for each purpose?
– I hope there aren’t too many of these pages for each person?
“Not much,” Trenell replied. – The old man believes in the 80/20 rule. This means that 80% of your most important results come from achieving 20% of your goals. So we limit One Minute Goal Setting to those 20%, the key areas of responsibility, so there are only three to six goals. Of course, in some special cases we set special One Minute Goals.
“Interesting,” said the young man. “I think I’m beginning to understand the importance of One Minute Goal Setting.” It's a kind of "no surprises" philosophy: everyone knows from the very beginning what is expected of them.
“Exactly,” Trenell nodded.
– So, One Minute Goal Setting is simply defining the terms of reference? – asked the young man.
- No. After introducing us to what our job is, the manager always explains to us what it takes to do it well. In other words, it clarifies the standards of execution for us. He shows us what he expects from us.
- How does he show it to you? – asked the young man.
“Let me give you an example,” Trenel suggested.
“When I first started working here, one of my One Minute Goals was to identify performance problems and find a solution that would make a difference.
I understood what the problem was that needed to be solved, but I didn’t know what to do about it. So I called the One Minute Manager. When he picked up the phone I said:
- Sir, I have a problem.
Before I could say another word, he said:
- This is good! After all, you were hired to solve problems. – And there was deathly silence at the other end of the line.
I didn't know what to do. The silence seemed deafening to me. Finally I squeezed out:
“But, sir, I don’t know how to solve this problem.”
“Trenell,” he said, “one of your tasks is to identify and solve your problems yourself.” But since you’re new, come in and let’s talk.
When I went to see him, he said:
– Tell us what your problem is, but only in behavioral terms.
– In behavioral terms? – I asked again. - What do you have in mind?
“What I mean,” the manager explained, “is that I don’t want to hear about attitudes and feelings alone.” Lay out what is happening in tangible, measurable terms.
I tried to describe the problem in the best possible way.
He said:
- Great, Trenelle! Now tell me what you want to happen - again in behavioral terms.
“I don’t know,” I said.
“Then don’t waste my time,” he snapped.
I froze in amazement, not knowing what to do. He graciously broke the silence.
“If you can't say what you want to happen,” he said, “you don't have a problem yet.” You're just complaining. A problem only exists when there is a difference between what actually happens and what you want to happen.
Being a smart person, I suddenly realized that I knew what I wanted to happen. When I told the One Minute Manager about this, he suggested we talk about what might have caused
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discrepancies between desired and actual.
He asked:
- Well, what are you going to do with all this?
“Well, I could do A,” I replied.
– If you do A, will that be exactly what you want to happen? - he asked.
“No,” I said.
“Then your decision is no good.” What else could you do?
“I could do B,” I said.
– But if you do B, will what you want happen happen? – he asked again.
I finally get it.
“So this is also a bad decision,” he said. – What else can you do?
I thought for a couple of minutes and said:
“I could do C. But if I do C, what I want to happen won’t happen, so that’s also a bad decision, right?”
- Yes. “You’re starting to understand,” the manager said with a smile on his face. – Is there anything else you can do?
“I could probably combine some of these solutions,” I said.
“Maybe it’s worth a try,” he responded.
- Exactly! If I do A this week, B next week, and C in two weeks, everything will work out. Fantastic! Thank you very much. You solved my problem.
He got very angry.
“That’s not true,” he interrupted me, “you decided it yourself.” I just asked you a few questions - questions that you might have asked yourself. Now go and start solving your problems on your time, not mine.
I, of course, understood what he did. He taught me how to solve problems so that in the future I could do it myself.
Then he stood up, looked me straight in the eyes and said:
- You did great, Trenel. Remember that next time you will already solve the problem.
I remember that I was smiling when I left his office.”
Trenell leaned back in his chair, his face showing that he was reliving his first meeting with the One Minute Manager.
“So,” the young man began, reflecting on what he had just heard...
One Minute Goals: Summary
One Minute Goal Setting is extremely simple:
1. Agree on your goals.
2. Determine what actions seem best.
3. Write down each of your goals so that it fits on one page and uses no more than 250 words.
4. Read and reread each of your goals, which will take you about a minute each time.
5. In the future, take a minute every day to make sure how quickly you are approaching a particular goal.
6. To what extent does your behavior correspond to your goal?
“That’s right,” exclaimed Trenel, “you are a capable student.”
“Thank you,” said the young man, very pleased with himself. – But let me briefly outline all this. I want to remember.
Read this book in its entirety by purchasing the full legal version (http://www.litres.ru/ken-blanshar/odnominutnyy-menedzher/?lfrom=279785000) on liters.
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