The Management Strategy Fad Phenomenon: Sifting Out the Real Gold from the Fools

Fads pervade every aspect of society; this means the business world is not immune. Especially in the management sector, where you would think the "tried-and-true" mentality (as far as management strategy goes) usually prevails. But is there any truth behind this dizzying array of passing fancies, or is it all really just hype?

The answer here, as with most things in life, lies somewhere in between. While most fads in society come and go, hinged on an intangible, ephemeral notion, many management strategy-related fads actually have an element of concrete reality behind them, something that gives them substance. After all, if they didn't, they wouldn't last very long in the world of management. This isn't to say that every fad that comes along is any good, but many times it will enter the mainstream if if it contains an element to either improve upon a strategy already implemented or promises to do the same thing even better.

But fads can cause problems of their own. Not necessarily by themselves, but it all comes down to the person trying to implement it. If that person is adept at their position, competent in managerial matters and not given to be easily swept away by every fad that comes by, they stand a good chance of being able to sift out the real gold of the latest fad without being attracted to the fools gold. Someone who lacks these qualities, however, may bring far more damage to their department than if they had left well enough alone. Company time, money and effort will be wasted as they hurry to implement a new management strategy they only partially understand. They form teams, give them work that may or may not actually be relevant to their job description, and congratulate themselves on putting a new practice into effect when all they've really done is create a mountain of confusion that will inevitable crumble into chaos.

This results in the company declaring the initiative, not the manager's poor implementation procedure, a failure and tosses it into the trash bin. Many times that even sets the stage for the tragedy to be repeated, as the inept manager lunges at the next fad so as not to lose face.

Treat each fad you come across with caution. They introduce methods to be used; they're nothing more than tools, and depending how one uses them they could either increase the efficiency of the entire department...or spell its destruction.