Emmanuel Badet–We renamed the management. We made it up, modernized it, dressed it up in seductive words. However, behind this contemporary veneer, many organizations still operate as they did yesterday, simply with more slides, more anglicisms and much more human fatigue
Let’s be clear-headed. Management sometimes resembles a shadow theatre. We talk about vision, autonomy, inspiration, while on the ground teams exhaust themselves to hold fragile systems together, compensating every day for choices they have not made
Two figures dominate
The technocratic manager, first of all. The one who looks at the world through dashboards, who confuses steering and reporting, who decides far from where problems arise. He thinks he is in control. Above all, he administers blindness
The heroic manager, then. The saviour in a hurry, a lover of stunts, convinced that acting quickly is always better than understanding slowly. He crosses the teams, decides, leaves, then is surprised that motivation is eroding
Apparently opposites, they share the same belief: managing is above all about deciding, controlling, optimising
But in real life, managing means working with humans. Imperfect humans, sometimes tired, often committed, locked into organizations that produce much of the complexity they claim to combat
The blind spot is not technical. He is human
You can accumulate diplomas and training. If you don’t know how to really listen, create a space where problems can be said without risk, accompany without crushing, you become a façade manager, a producer of decisions above ground, a discreet accelerator of disengagement
Henry Mintzberg writes it with disturbing lucidity: most people go through their careers without turning their experiences into learning. They repeat patterns, call it experience, and are surprised that nothing changes
Real management is nothing spectacular. It does not stand in an inspirational quote. It is made up of uncomfortable conversations, imperfect arbitrations, moments when we accept not to know and to seek with the teams rather than for them
It means spending less time trying to appear competent and more time creating the conditions for others to be competent
Before you try to become more inspiring, one question deserves to be asked honestly: what do I do, concretely, every day, to make my team more successful than I alone?
If the answer remains unclear, it is not a problem of charisma. It’s a posture problem
Less staging. Less heroism in disguise. More presence. No more listening. More quiet courage
Because the future of management will not be played out in one more model. It will depend on our ability to become profoundly human again.
About Author, Emmanuel Badet
Former elite athlete and industrial manager with 20+ years’ experience supporting leaders in high-pressure environments. Helps organizations realign people and systems to restore sustainable collective performance. Works with industrial companies, executives evolving toward coach-style leadership, and high-performers in sport and business. Applies an integrated field approach combining living Lean, leadership coaching, and mental performance. Delivers impact through coaching, leadership programs, Lean seminars, and conferences.