"Hamburger Management" Revealed

One of the web sites that I visit often is Management Issues. It’s a British site, so much of its news directly relates to the other side of the Atlantic, but it also includes many ideas and news pieces from the USA as well. On a recent visit, three postings caught my eye. While they were not formally associated with one another, taken together they showed a depressing vision of UK corporate culture. Sadly, I believe that what they say could just as easily be applied to the United States and most of the rest of the Western, industrialized world.

Let’s begin with the results of a massive survey into the views that young, talented people have of their bosses. Here’s a basic summary. You can find the whole piece via this link.The study by the Institute of Leadership and Management has found that just when firms are needing to attract ever more scarce younger workers, they are in fact deterring them. Many of the nearly 400,000 UK workers aged 18-24 surveyed feel that their manager is holding them back. Old style, dictatorial management practices top the list of management problems, along with managers who look for someone else to blame for their own mistakes, managers who expect staff to do as they are told without debate, those who do not allow subordinates to contribute, and those who are obstructive.

What I believe we are seeing here is not “old style” at all. It is modern, Hamburger Management: the process of doing everything as quickly and cheaply as possible.

Old-style, dictatorial managers? People who shift the blame onto others? Managers who stifle debate and demand blind obedience? It all sounds so familiar. What I believe we are seeing here is not “old style” at all. It is modern, Hamburger Management: the process of doing everything as quickly and cheaply as possible. When everything has to be done yesterday, there can be no time for debate or questioning. Blind obedience is required because that is the only response that fits the constant demands for going faster and doing more with fewer and fewer resources. Blaming others? Hamburger Management is like every other type of cheap, shoddy goods. It doesn’t work very well. So those who use it must constantly find excuses to avoid the truth being seen: that they are incompetent because of the methods they are using.

So far, so bad. Then yet another survey deals a blow to all the expensive nonsense and wasted time devoted to training managers on how to motivate their people, when the basic system is bound to produce the opposite effect. Once again, I’m extracting a summary, so you may want to look at the full piece here.

A study by management consultancy Hay Group found that just 15 per cent of UK workers considered themselves "highly motivated", with as many as a quarter admitting to "coasting" in their jobs. Equally worrying was that a tenth of workers said they were "completely demotivated". Well under half of employees loved their jobs, and even fewer—a paltry 17 per cent—described themselves as doing their "dream job". . . . Poor management was a key part of the problem . . .

Faced with rushed deadlines, constant pressure to cut corners, pointless, short-term objectives, and an almost complete denial of the time and space needed to do things correctly, it would take a miracle to produce strong motivation in anyone.

It seems, on the surface, that despite years of various gurus going on endlessly about motivation, managers are still making a pretty feeble job of producing it. But don’t blame the managers. The problem lies in the nature of today’s working environment. Faced with rushed deadlines, constant pressure to cut corners, pointless, short-term objectives, and an almost complete denial of the time and space needed to do things correctly, it would take a miracle to produce strong motivation in anyone. You cannot motivate people artificially when the system denies them the time to do a good job, the resources they need to do it, the time to make it happen, or the proper work/life balance to support their efforts—all the while showing them a tiny handful of top people making enormous, almost obscene amounts of money out of the resulting profits.

What about the managers themselves? It seems they aren’t having a good time either. Another piece, based on a survey by the Chartered Management Institute, listed some of their woes:

• A combination of red tape, too many day-to-day pressures, and lack of support from their own bosses.


• Being held back by bureaucracy, poor resources, and a lack of guidance and help.


• Fewer than half those polled believing they are fully using their skills in their current job, and just three out of 10 adamant they "play to their strengths".

It seems that these managers admitted they are not keeping up with current market trends, budgetary or financial management issues. They know they are far behind what they see as their true potential:

More than one third of managers frequently looked back over their career and wished they had developed new skills. More than two thirds thought they should have asked more questions of their peers and colleagues, and one in five often considered how they could have progressed more quickly by "taking more risks".

So are these people sad, lazy, underperforming drop-outs? Not a bit of it.

Nearly two thirds of managers claimed to be energetic at work, with a similar number actively looking to take on new projects and more than half prepared to "go the extra mile" to achieve success. More women (31 per cent) than men (25 per cent) constantly tried to beat targets or deadlines, said the CMI.

All in all, the effect on productivity must be dramatic—far greater than any supposed benefits produced by all the stress and pressure of relying on Hamburger Management.

Taken together, these survey findings paint a convincing picture of managers trying hard to do their jobs and develop themselves, but being constantly held back by poor organization and the mistakes of those above them. Their subordinates are poorly motivated and see them as inadequate role models. All in all, the effect on productivity must be dramatic—far greater than any supposed benefits produced by all the stress and pressure involved in relying on Hamburger Management.

It does not need to be like this. Most people are motivated to do their jobs and do them well—if only they are allowed the time and freedom to do so. Work can be an enjoyable and fulfilling place to be—so long as it is civilized in its operations and fair in allocating rewards. Hamburger Management is not the cure for problems of productivity and lack of competitiveness. It is the cause.

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