DEALING with choices can be a dilemma, especially if both                                                                                             
alternatives are equally appealing. Many of us in fact started                                                                                        
to learn to deal with dilemmas from a young age.                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                                      
And as adults, we still sometimes agonise over choices. It is                                                                                         
either the down-payment for a house or a car. But we often                                                                                            
don't have the luxury of having both.                                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                                      
A very real dilemma faced by highly-visible executives is the                                                                                         
choice of a fast-paced lifestyle, with functions almost every                                                                                         
night, or a more relaxed style, with entertainment at a                                                                                               
minimum.                                                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                                      
Very often, a decision is made only after their health starts                                                                                         
to become an issue.                                                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                                      
We will look at seven of these dilemmas faced by top managers.                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                                      
* High Visibility vs.  Broad based Leadership                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                                      
MOST of the senior managers felt the need to be highly                                                                                                
visible, that they have to be out there leading the troops and                                                                                        
shouting commands.                                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                                      
Paradoxically, these same top management people appreciate the                                                                                        
importance of making leaders out of the managers or                                                                                                   
supervisors who man the other tiers of the corporate ladder.                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                                      
Making leaders out of lower-rung managers would mean the need                                                                                         
to let go (to a certain extent) of ones hold on power or                                                                                              
authority. But some top managers have a real problem sharing                                                                                          
that power with others.                                                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                                      
On the other hand, they are very conscious of the fact that                                                                                           
successful organisations today have to empower their manager                                                                                          
in the middle-levels and their supervisors so that they can                                                                                           
function with increased zeal and commitment towards achieving                                                                                         
organisational goals.                                                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                                      
Autocratic organisations not only produce managers who are                                                                                            
afraid to make decisions (for fear of being shouted at by                                                                                             
their bosses) they also stifle their employees competitive                                                                                            
drive and creativity.                                                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                                      
* Independence vs. Interdependence                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                                      
ALMOST all organisations today are structured along functional                                                                                        
lines such as Marketing/Sales Division, Finance and                                                                                                   
Administration, Production Division, Logistics and Warehousing                                                                                        
and so on.                                                                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                                      
Each division is headed by a manager. The tendency is each                                                                                            
Divisional Manager takes care of his people and turf without                                                                                          
much sympathy for the other divisions.                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                                      
Some corporate CEOs or General Managers find it more                                                                                                  
convenient to practise the policy of `divide and rule' so that                                                                                        
their subordinates would not gang up against them.                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                                      
Some divisional heads, especially those who are more clever or                                                                                        
ego-driven, enjoy `one-upmanship'. There is also a third                                                                                              
reason, and that is performance evaluation and renumerations                                                                                          
are closely linked to each division's bottom-line or                                                                                                  
effectiveness. This discouraged co-operation.                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                                      
Inter-departmental rivalry therefore is commonplace throughout                                                                                        
the world. Only extraordinary corporate leaders have found the                                                                                        
way to achieve a fine balance of harmonising employees'                                                                                               
loyalty to divisions and divisional co-operation.                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                                      
Corporate common-goals are easily verbalised or they look very                                                                                        
impressive and noble in company's mission statements and so                                                                                           
on.                                                                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                                      
But in reality, getting divisions to operate at their best,                                                                                           
and getting them to pull their divisional strengths together                                                                                          
in one direction, towards a common goal, is a wish all CEOs                                                                                           
desire but have difficulty achieving.                                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                                      
But one thing is certain: organisations whose employees feel                                                                                          
that they are all in the same ship and are committed to                                                                                               
achieving their company's goal are more successful.                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                                      
* Long Term vs. Short-term                                                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                                      
KENICHI Ohmae, a prolific management writer once told the                                                                                             
story of two Japanese sewing machine manufacturers, Brothers                                                                                          
Corporation and Recar.                                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                                      
Brother Corporation looked at its main business, sewing                                                                                               
machines and realised that fewer and fewer Japanese women                                                                                             
actually sew. They buy ready-made blouses.                                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                                      
This long-term view made Brother Corporation diversify into                                                                                           
office automation. It quickly became one of the world's                                                                                               
largest makers of electronic typewriters.                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                                      
On the other hand, Recar failed to take a long-term view. It                                                                                          
planned only around its sewing machines, concentrated on                                                                                              
perfecting its products without adapting to changes in the                                                                                            
market even though there were indications that demands for                                                                                            
sewing machines were softening.                                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                                      
In early 1985, Recar Sewing Machines went out of business.                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                                      
* Creativity vs. Discipline                                                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                                      
BUREAUCRATIC organisations are effective because capable                                                                                              
managers ensure company policies are adhered to. Those who                                                                                            
step out of line are swiftly reprimanded.                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                                      
Without discipline, managers cannot run an organisation                                                                                               
effectively. But when an organisation is run this way, it                                                                                             
accumulates more and more "red tapes" over time, and they                                                                                   
stifle creativity and impede change.                                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                                      
If you are a creative young man in such an orzanisation,                                                                                              
whatever you try to do to put you creative idea to worK, you                                                                                          
will meet all sorts of restrictive `company rules'.                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                                      
In due course, either your creative urge is turned into                                                                                               
cynicism or you leave the organisation and try your luck                                                                                              
elsewhere.                                                                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                                      
With few exceptions, every organisation can appreciate the                                                                                            
value in creative talents, but it is the few rare                                                                                                     
organisations which can provide the fertile ground for                                                                                                
creative experimentations.                                                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                                      
Many justifications or excuses are offered in order not to try                                                                                        
out something dif ferent. Risk is one.  Fear of economic loss                                                                                         
discourage CEOs who prefer conservatism-why invest money in                                                                                           
something where the chance of success is one in a hundred? Why                                                                                        
rock the boat?                                                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                                      
There is also another factor here. Creative individuals very                                                                                          
often are feared by their superiors or peers. They do not want                                                                                        
to see an individual achieving success.                                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                                      
It makes others feel inadequate or rob someone else s chance                                                                                          
of promotion.  So, unless a organisation has the culture of                                                                                           
tapping the creative talents of its employees there will be                                                                                           
very little opportunities for such individuals.                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                                      
* Trust vs. Change                                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                                      
MORE than 80 per cent of the time, organisations trying to                                                                                            
reengineer themselves failed because the employees are unable                                                                                         
to trust the top management's intentions.                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                                      
Old work groups fear that their jobs will become redundant                                                                                            
once a more efficient and effective way of doing things is                                                                                            
successfully implemented.                                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                                      
So what are perceived as positive changes by the top managers                                                                                         
are perceived negatively by the workers.  Without trust, we                                                                                           
can forget about implementing organisational restructure.                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                                      
It simply won't work. Far too many companies have tried and                                                                                           
few had really got the message.                                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                                      
* People vs. Productivity                                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                                      
TRY asking any employee which organisation rewards employees                                                                                          
productivity fairly and equitably when productivity goes up?                                                                                          
Or is it more familiar that when productivity goes up, top                                                                                            
management attributes that to new technology and newly                                                                                                
installed machinery?                                                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                                      
Furthermore, almost all organisations still rely on the                                                                                               
old-fashioned performance appraised system which evaluates                                                                                            
individual employees contributions and rewards them                                                                                                   
individually (with favoured individuals getting the cream and                                                                                         
the dedicated workhorses getting the peanuts.)                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                                      
To make matters worse, when organisations or departments do                                                                                           
well, the credit is often claimed by the heads of department                                                                                          
or organisation.                                                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                                      
Studies have shown that in every organisation, there are bound                                                                                        
to be about 20 per cent of employees who are dedicated and                                                                                            
hard-working.  Unfortunately, only the lucky organisations                                                                                            
find a way to achieve a win:win situation with these                                                                                                  
workaholics.                                                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                                      
Must organisational cultures ostracise and punish individuals                                                                                         
who perform beyond normal levels.                                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                                      
* Leaders vs. Capability                                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                                      
THERE is a genuine dilemma between leadership and managerial                                                                                          
capability. Leaders need to have people-and-vision skills.                                                                                            
Whereas managers only require managerial and technical                                                                                                
competency to ensure or enhance operational effectiveness.                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                                      
Without leaders to provide the strategic directions and the                                                                                           
people skills to communicate the vision downwards to the                                                                                              
shop-floor, and to motivate the workforce to pull their                                                                                               
energies in a given direction, managerial capabilities alone                                                                                          
are not sufficient.                                                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                                      
In John Kotter's book Leading Change, 1996, the Harvard                                                                                               
professor made it quite clear that it is leaders who lead                                                                                             
change, and managers lacking in leadership skill simply can't                                                                                         
lead change.                                                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                                      
* Conclusion                                                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                                      
MANAGEMENT dilemmas are as ancient as the great pyramids of                                                                                           
Egypt and they will continue to be problematic or offering                                                                                            
opportunities to the more creative.                                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                                      
As the rate of change continue to gather momentum into the                                                                                            
21st Century, organisations simply need to be more responsive                                                                                         
and one of the ways is to encourage work-teams at all levels                                                                                          
of the corporate hierarchies.                                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                                      
This entails, therefore the need to develop leadership skills                                                                                         
and equip their managers and supervisors with the skill of                                                                                            
handling dilemmas so that they won't be made impotent by them.