Complementary Management Roles
The second element of the Complementary Management Model are the management roles. They show how different management actors work together. They are also key to understanding the levels at which management and leadership is exercised.
The Actor Roles
Management and leadership is not a single person’s doing, but rather a collective phenomenon in which different actors are involved. In the literature, this is discussed under the term “Shared Leadership,” with most sources portraying it as a special, emergent phenomenon rather than a factual normality. The Complementary Management Model goes beyond this by describing an optimal mode in which different roles complement each other.
Self-management and Lateral Managament
Management and leadership should primarily consist of self-steerage. This insight is not new; it has been invoked in management literature for many decades. In fact, it would be implausible to assign people management tasks such as motivation, conflict resolution, goal stipulation, or health protection primarily to the line manager. Likewise, structural management tasks such as strategy development or process optimization depend on the participation of each and every individual. This is why the Complementary Management Model is based on the primacy of self-management. Ideally, all employees perform all management tasks relating to themselves and their own positions themselves. In addition, they support the self-management of others in their role as colleagues.
Nobody manages alone.
The Compensating Role of the Line Manager
The big question when it comes to self-management, which almost always goes unanswered, is of course: “What if not?” Unfortunately, there is no such thing as the perfect employee who always performs all management tasks him or herself. We all have, to varying degrees, sometimes and in some respects, a need for external influence. The Complementary Management Model solves this problem through the compensatory role of the line manager. It focuses primarily on self-management, but at the same time requires line managers to step in when necessary—and only then. If there are self-management deficits with regard to one or more management tasks, the line manager must recognize this and intervene. The way this is done can vary greatly depending on the individual and the situation, and requires the appropriate knowledge and skills.
Self-management as a maxim and the line manager as a compensating entity.
The Senior Manager and the HR Advisor as Additional Actor Roles
Of course, managers are only human, and management and leadership are just a job. Deficits are therefore to be expected. If management and leadership are to function effectively within organizations, additional compensatory mechanisms must be in place. The Complementary Management Model provides these mechanisms in the roles of senior manager and HR advisor. Both act in relation to the line manager as the line manager acts in relation to the employee. This means that they primarily rely on the line manager’s self-steering and intervene (only) when necessary. This creates a robust overall system that ensures that all management tasks are fulfilled with regard to all employees and organizational units.
Management and leadership is anything but trivial. One of the reasons for this is that it takes place on several levels simultaneously. For example, the employee role of clerks, production workers, etc. does not only involve self-management, but also, where applicable, participatory involvement in the management and leadership of higher-level organizational units. In addition, there may be lateral leadership of peers from a colleague role. Managers also do not just perform the role of manager, but also act as self-managers in their role as employees and as lateral leaders in their role as colleagues. Senior managers, who for their part manage other managers, are also required to perform this role. HR advisors also have three or more roles. This complicates matters, but simply describes reality. Management is always multiple management. Admittedly, the whole thing only becomes really understandable when you look at the »management routines«.
