Customer Reviews

THE ONE MINUTE MANAGER.

5 star:		(57)
4 star:		(22)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(9)

 

 

This book is a great lesson on how to deal with people around you, not only employees, it is applicable in all contexts, even in family and any type of relationship. The concepts make a lot of sense, after reading this book, I thought: Wow, it is so true, we should all read it! WORTH A LOT MORE THAN A FEW BUCKS.

The One Minute Manager by Drs. Kenneth Blanchard and Spencer Johnson was a breviloquent, easy to read manual on efficient yet effective management. The text focuses on goal setting, one minute praising, and constructive reprimands; the principles are clearly stated and widely applicable to a range of personal and professional circumstances.

The authors underscore the importance of clearly visualizing, verbalizing, and working toward the actualization of short-term and long-term goals. Goals are written down in 250 words or less then used to guide and gauge daily progress toward the declared objectives. Goal-setting can be applied in one's personal life or professional life providing they are in harmony with the goals of the organization.

The "second secret" to effective management is the "one-minute praising". The authors stress the importance of catching subordinates in the act of "doing something good" and recognizing their good work. Correspondingly, constructive criticism is necessary at times. The authors stress the "one-minute reprimand" - good managers let subordinates know what they did wrong, that they are capable of doing better, and facilitate the identification and implementation of corrective action.

The principles discussed in One Minute Manager are extremely valuable in a professional medical workplace. Employees should be focused on their own goals as well as those of the office as a whole. In such a high-stress environment, recognition of even the smallest employee successes will lead to a more productive workplace.

Kenneth Blanchard's "The One Minute Manager" is a short book that should have either been much shorter or much longer. The longer version would have been supported with research and case studies to back up Blanchard's claims that the techniques are effective. For readers who don't need or want the supporting evidence, here is what the shorter version would look like:

1) Good managers are not micromanagers; they expect employees to take initiative and solve their own problems.

2) Good managers set goals for their employees that are brief and have clear performance standards and expectations.

3) Good managers look for opportunities to praise their employees because self-confident employees are happier and more productive. Employees learn to internalize praise.

4) Good managers are also quick and clear in providing feedback when something goes wrong. Reprimands are more effective when it is understood that managers think highly of their employees. (Presumably, if the "One-Minute Reprimands" happen too often, the employee will no longer work for the One-Minute Manager, so that ending reprimands with statements of the employee's value, as suggested, will always be sincere.)

That's about it.

All this is probably good advice. One of the bosses whose management style I most admired and who inspired me to a high level of performance was very much like the One Minute Manager in the book. I rarely saw him, but when I did, it was clear that he had been paying attention and that he valued my work.

But the storytelling format of the book--it's told by a naive young narrator who interviews the one-minute manager and his employees--draws a couple of pages of material out into a hundred page book. That's much less than many management self-help books, to be sure, and one gets the impression the author is trying to walk his talk. To Blanchard, management is more common sense than rocket science, and a long book would be a waste of time.

I like the idea that, in management as as in writing, less is often more. In many workplaces, memos, meetings, and manuals are about ten times as long as they need to be. We are bombarded with so much information that, what my bosses often want and what I appreciate most from my own employees, are good two-paragraph summaries of a week's worth of research. If they are done well, these summaries will take longer to research and write than a ten page report would have, but they save their readers time and actually produce a net gain in information.

But if Blanchard's book wants to be the Strunk and White guide to the boardroom--brevity, brevity, brevity--the book falls short. It took me almost an hour to read, which is 59 more than it should have.

I really liked this book, but for the same reasons I liked it, some may hate it.

First of all, it's an easy read, and it gets its points across by telling a story. Other books, such as The Sixty-Second Motivator, have also used this format succesfully, but this style may not appeal to everyone. To me, it makes the book a lot less boring to read.

Secondly, the book is short. The vast majority of readers will easily be able to read this book in a day. It has bigger font, which I personally liked and thought it made it a joy to read. However here again, some may be turned off by that and consider it to be too "child-like."

Thirdly, the book takes solid mangagerial info and gives it to the reader handily in the form of three "secrets." I found the advice to be very practical and while some may consider it far too simple, it can help you a lot IF you actually apply the info- which I suspect most managers do not.

In conclusion, I recommend this short business classic to anyone looking for better ways to improve their managerial skills. I doubt most will be disappointed.

How The Hell Can I rate it.
I am continuing trying to get the damn book.
Please send it to me.
Gordon Wareham.

Order # 701 8238688-4304243
Order placed July 4 2011

'The One Minute Manager', written in 1981 by highly-regarded author and consultant Kenneth H. Blanchard and by Spencer Johnson, is an excellent book on improving management effectiveness and employee productivity. And, while increased 'knowledge worker' efficiency may have made it simple enough in the 80s and early 90s for companies to simply dismiss below-average workers (they didn't require replacing, as fewer total knowledge workers were required to perform the same tasks as before), the 21st century challenge will be to optimize the performance of employees already in the organization, as profitable businesses will likely need to replace dismissed workers. This will involve improved management practices, such as the ones espoused in this book.

'One Minute Manager' is very short (can be read in less than one hour), yet has the potential to greatly improve management efficiency. The book discusses three 'secrets' -- one minute goals, one minute praising, and one minute reprimands. To briefly summarize, the theory espoused in the book is for the manager to set one-page goals with each employee for the top 20% of tasks which, according to Pareto, account for 80% of the productivity of the employee. Next, the manager follows up with either immediate one minute praise or an immediate behavior-based (rather than personal) one minute reprimand. The praise is designed to focus the employee behavior toward continuous improvement. As such, a less-capable employee (typically a newer one) would receive praise for lesser accomplishments than would a more seasoned one. The reprimand is to reinforce the goals of the organization.

The theories made a lot of sense. They espouse the true vision of 'leadership', which is to guide the organization in a specific direction, toward specific goals and achievement. I recommend this book to anyone interested in leadership or effectiveness.

Like the book, I will keep this simple - worth the purchase, worth the read, re-read then pass it on or purchase for your superior, peer, friend.

This should be in the library of all managers and those aspiring to be leaders. It keeps accountability straight; and promotes initiative and quality in all involved. I find that this method gives each person in my command a sense of worth and it is very respectful of that person's ideas and performance. Better than any other style of management.

"The One Minute Manger" by Kenneth Blanchard and Spencer Johnson teaches the readers the three skills to achieving effective management. Although the keys to being an effective and successful manager, as described by Blanchard and Johnson, seems unbelievably simple, they will strike an understanding chord among most people who have ever managed and supervised employees. Not because managers typically follow the principles, but precisely because these simple principles are ones that they intuitively know they should be practicing yet do not because of lack of conviction in the methods, worry about changing management styles, low level of interest, or apprehension that they will take too much time.

Not to fear, Blanchard and Johnson address these concerns in their short simple book. The allegory starts off with a young man in search of an effective manager. Initially disillusioned by the managers he encounters, who are only results-oriented at the expense of the employees or only people-oriented at the expense of the organization, the young man discovers The One Minute Manager. The young man learns from The One Minute Manager and the people whom he manages the philosophy of the one-minute management style. The authors gradually convince the readers through examples, anecdotes, explanations, and quotable quotes why and how their three principles, when followed appropriately, actually work. A brief guideline list accompanies each of the three management skills: the "one minute goal setting," "one minute praising," and "one minute reprimand." There is even a concise flow chart to help solidify the management principles into one page near the end of the book; no doubt, designed to be cut-out or photocopied and posted in every manager's office. By the end of the short 60 minutes required to finish the book, most readers will be convinced to at least test out the method. After all, the title of the book already suggests that time commitment is not an issue; one can become an effective manager by investing a short 60-second of time. When one reads the book, this really translates to several 60-second intervals per day, but the amount of time will be much less than what most managers are used to.

More effective management in significantly less time? Is it possible? The authors certainly make a compelling yet uncomplicated and clear case for this. One does have to wonder if this is too easy. Will it work for managing all types of people in all types of organizations? How about the slackers? Or the employee who is the wrong fit for the job, doesn't have the appropriate training, or lacks motivation? How about the company with a long tradition of top-down management style? The book doesn't get mired in the details or specifics of every possible variation or situation; instead it attempts to provide the general strategies of effective management. The simple message of the book is to focus on making people feel valued which will lead to greater self-motivation and increased productivity for the individual and organization. As the One Minute Manager best described it, "People who feel good about themselves produce good results." And because they are not difficult to understand, learn, or implement, the skills can be readily used by most managers immediately.

The book is not only for managers of people. The message from the book is relevant to anybody interacting with people or when managing your own work and life. For example, I can utilize the skills to not only manage the people who report to me, but also in working with my colleagues or my supervisor, although the lesson on reprimanding may be less applicable in such situations. The most useful setting to apply the skills, perhaps, is when teamwork is involved, such as in committees, meetings, and group projects. This is when setting goals and timelines are critical and working effectively with colleagues, including giving praise and constructive criticism, is paramount to success. Furthermore, I can even see me being a One Minute Manager to myself, be it in the work environment, personal life, educational pursuits, or participation in hobbies. Who wouldn't want to be happier and have better results in all of these activities? I wouldn't mind impressing my boss more, fulfilling all my New Year's resolutions, or running a marathon in 3 hours and 15 minutes. After reading "The One Minute Manger", most readers will want to be a One Minute Manager tomorrow.

The book demonstrates three easy to use management techniques: One Minute Goal Setting, One Minute Praising, and One Minute Reprimands. One Minute Goal Setting involves setting clear performance standards and expectations. According to the authors, most managers use NIHYSOB or "Now I have you - you SOB" These managers don't tell people what they expect of them; they just leave them alone and then "zap" them when they don't perform at the desired level. In One Minute Goal Setting the manager and employee agree on goals or key areas of responsibilities so that the employee knows what they will be accountable for and what performance is expected. The manager and employee agree that the manager will let the employee know when they are performing well and when they are not.

After One Minute Goal setting the manager stays in close contact with the employee and gives them a One Minute Praising when they do something right. The most important thing in training someone is to catch them doing something right-in the beginning it may be approximately right and gradually move them towards the desired behaviors. Praise employees for what they do right and encourage them to repeat the behavior. That's why it's important to observe new people in the beginning or when starting a new project. The praise should come immediately after you see them do something right and not just at performance review times.

If the employee is not performing as agreed on in the One Minute Goal Setting then the manger may use One Minute Reprimands. The authors state that most managers are "gunnysack discipliners." That is, they store up observations of poor performance and then at performance review time or when they are angry they "open the sack." They tell people all the things they've done wrong for the last weeks or months. The idea behind One Minute Reprimands is that the manager should intervene early and deal with the problem at the time that it happens and not wait till the performance review time. Reprimands should be fair and should focus on behavior and not on the worth of the person. The reprimand should always be followed by a praising -- telling the person what they are doing right and how much they are valued.

Although this book was written over 20 years ago the advice given by Blanchard and Johnson still holds true today. I can personally identify with what they refer to as NIHYSOB and "gunny sack" managers. I work in an organization where managers are hired strictly on the bases of their subject matter expertise and not because of their management or interpersonal skills. This means most employees are left on their own to figure out what they are supposed to be doing on the job. Feedback on what you're doing right or wrong is rarely given. The annual performance feedback is considered a "joke" because most managers give every employee an outstanding evaluation in order to avoid conflict. As one can imagine this doesn't create the most motivating work environment.

In summary the One Minute Manager states that managers should: 1) set one minute goals with people to make sure they know what are being held accountable for and what performance is expected, 2) try to catch them doing something good and give them immediately praise, and 3) if they have the skills to do something right and they don't; them reprimand them.