Discusses about the effects of firing managers after a losing
season in an organization. Comparisons between managerial turnover and
team performance in 1980 and 1993; Causes of poor team
performance.
By
Camille Chatterjee, published on September 01, 1997
In major league baseball, too many strikes often mean the team's
manager isout--of a job. But firing the manager after a losing season may
be an error, according to a new study. Like corporate CEOs, managers are
often convenient scapegoats for larger problems within an
organization.
Comparing managerial turnover and team performance between 1980 and
1993, researchers at the State University of New York, Albany, found that
acquiring a new manager had no bearing on a team's subsequent
performance. "This really contradicts what you would expect from major
league baseball," says head researcher Steven J. Lorenzet, Ph.D. "They're
constantly firing these guys." Lorenzet believes that a team's poor
performance is more likely due to players' ability and motivation,
player-manager relationships, and the team's market and payroll
size.
Similarly, in the corporate world--where as many as 16 percent of
CEOs are replaced each year--axing the boss won't necessarily improve
business. "When you replace the leader but the system is faulty," warns
Lorenzet, "the new leader is just going to experience the same
problems--and the company has usually lost a great deal of money in the
process."
PHOTO (COLOR): When managers strike out
Tags:
baseball,
bearing,
CEO,
head researcher,
major league baseball,
manager,
payroll,
performance,
photo color,
poor performance,
s market,
state university of new york,
strikes,
team performance,
work
