Why the “soccer team” metaphor is increasingly obsolete for modern Companies
Business leaders have used the metaphor of a soccer team for decades to describe how a company should function. This metaphor is a set of players with different roles working toward a common goal coordinated by a coach manager working to win the game within a set of rules and a defined field. This metaphor worked well in stable environments with hierarchies, fixed roles, aligned objectives, and long planning cycles. But in today’s world, global companies must function in a VUCA environment.
The manager good at building and the one good at destroying
There are several management levels in every organization, however, there is one distinction worth noticing: demarcation between managers who build and managers who destroy. They will both remain relevant in their own unique ways (yes, even the destroyers). However, understanding the attributes and strategies employed by each one of them is the cornerstone separating the successful growth from chairing operational disarray.