My thoughts on achieving a healthy balance between leading and managing are really about applying the appropriate tactic based on the situation. As a senior executive in my organization I am expected to make strategic decisions for the organization. I’m also expected to adapt or change directions should the situation warrant it. Conversely there are times when I also must step in as a Manager as I teach some of my subordinates how to apply employee coaching. It’s not something that I set out to balance but as a leader I’m expected to step into any given situation and apply the appropriate response. At times it can also depend on the strength of a Manager or Director that is reporting to me. As a leader I try and encourage them to make decisions and know when to step in. They are all at varying levels of development in their career and so its about adapting to the right situation. Now my situation may be different as we are not a large organization (160 employees). My former place of employment however had over 2000 employees and so executives at that company did not spend much time in a management role and instead mainly focused on organizational leadership.
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