“Reflections on ‘What is Management?”

Many business scholars and managers are discussing ‘What is management?’ each for their own reasons, but the definition that I like most and that inspires a sense of challenge as a manager is what Professor Peter Drucker said: ‘Management is the task of enabling ordinary people to do extraordinary things.’

Management only applies when several people work together, and with the exception of a few very specific organizations, you can assume that most organizations of similar size consist of ordinary people when averaged out. Therefore, it’s not whether the organization members can do extraordinary things due to their differences, but whether proper management is performed, which makes a big difference in the outcome.

The following types of organizations clearly cannot perform extraordinary tasks:

Organizations where people are used as tools
Organizations with a top-down culture of doing as they’re told
Organizations where members stagnate and challenges are missing
On the other hand, I believe that when members are respected as dignified entities and are made aware of the meaning and value of their work, they can spontaneously generate extraordinary results.

A one-time surprise performance is not an extraordinary thing. The extraordinary things are constantly producing good results and making all members enjoy their work passionately. In a constantly changing business environment, to achieve consistently good results compared to various competitors, the continuous growth of members, including managers, must be supported.

Every human goes through trial and error in life, filling in their shortcomings through new learning. In a way, a company can be seen as providing the best opportunity to fill one’s gaps through work.
Among the most important tasks of a manager is to provide opportunities for members to work in new ways and to motivate them to develop themselves so that they do not stagnate in life.
I assert that ‘It is impossible to achieve extraordinary results without the continuous growth of members.’

The reason why our company has chosen ‘Dignity Restoration’ and ‘Life Oriented for Development’ as the core motto of corporate culture since last year is precisely because we want ordinary people to do extraordinary things.