workers frequently seek their assistance, or take up their time in other ways.
Potentially, this can strongly impact their effectiveness.
There is only one point on which I disagree with Drucker, who held that whether
knowledge workers – and leaders – maintain good interpersonal relations or not
does not depend on whether they have empathy for people, but only on whether
they concentrate on contributing to the entrepreneurial success. I think this is
misleading. Empathy is crucial, and concerns more than a warm hug or small
talk; rather, it permeates situations and guides leaders in sensing how to lead the
individual person – as Drucker also confirmed.
In modern knowledge organizations, Drucker described effective interpersonal
relations as having four fundamental requirements. First of all, effective communi-
cation is essential. Here Drucker noted that effective communication is nearly
impossible when based on a hierarchical relationship. “The more the superior is
anxious to communicate to his or her subordinates, the more probable it becomes
that subordinates misunderstand the information. They will not hear what was said,
but only what they expected to hear” (Drucker 2004, p. 253). Knowledge workers
must communicate with one another as equals in order to be able to share informa-
tion and in order to accurately gauge the intended message.
Secondly, teamwork must be possible. According to Drucker, cooperation is not
simply a matter of formal structure and scope of responsibility, but requires both
horizontal communication and solid self-organization. Thirdly, individual self-
development of managers and knowledge workers is necessary. And again, all
must ask themselves: what is the most important contribution I can make to the
performance of this organization? How do I need to develop myself further? Which
standards do I set for myself? Therefore, fourthly, managers should promote the
learning and development of others, including subordinates, colleagues, and
superiors.
Drucker observed that we still know very little about self-development, a situa-
tion I hope to remedy with this handbook. Drucker focused less on the personality
of the manager, or of the knowledge worker, but rather on topics such as time mana-
gement, communication, innovation, education and effectiveness (see Drucker
2004, pp. 156–256).
2.1.1.3 Making Personnel Decisions
Managers spend the majority of their time and energy on leading employees and
with general personnel-related decisions – and that’s the way it should be. Even so,
many of these personnel decisions will be incorrect. After the decisions are made
and thoroughly examined, only approximately one third of them prove to be correct
in the long run. What basic rules should upper-level management use in order
to make good personnel decisions? The aforementioned Drucker (2004, p. 158)
created the following, brilliant list:
22 2 Occupation or Calling: What Makes for Good Leadership?