Mintzberg's Ten Management Roles
Mintzberg's Ten Management Roles are a complete set of behaviours or roles within a business environment. Each role is different, thus spanning the variety of all identified management behaviours. When collected together as an integrated whole (gestalt), the capabilities and competencies of a manager can be further evaluated in a role-specific way.
The Ten Management Roles
The ten roles explored in this theory have extensive explanations which are briefly
developed here:
- Figurehead: All social, inspiration, legal and ceremonial obligations. In this light, the manager is seen as a symbol of status and authority.
- Leader: Duties are at the heart of the manager-subordinate relationship and include structuring and motivating subordinates, overseeing their progress, promoting and encouraging their development, and balancing effectiveness.
- Liaison: Describes the information and communication obligations of a manager. One must network and engage in information exchange to gain access to knowledge bases.
- Monitor: Duties include assessing internal operations, a department's success and the problems and opportunities which may arise. All the information gained in this capacity must be stored and maintained.
- Disseminator: Highlights factual or value based external views into the organisation and to subordinates. This requires both filtering and delegation skills.
- Spokesman: Serves in a PR capacity by informing and lobbying others to keep key stakeholders updated about the operations of the organisation.
- Entrepreneur: Roles encourage managers to create improvement projects and work to delegate, empower and supervise teams in the development process.
- Disturbance handler: A generalist role that takes charge when an organisation is unexpectedly upset or transformed and requires calming and support.
- Resource Allocator: Describes the responsibility of allocating and overseeing financial, material and personnel resources.
- Negotiator: Is a specific task which is integral for the spokesman, figurehead and resource allocator roles.
