Managers should learn satisficing...

 

'Perfection' is the key word to most managers. And why not? This, afterall is a competitive world. 

Projecting ones' most efficient abilities to produce best possible results with minimum available resources becomes the greatest challenge for the managers in the battle-field of professional outsmarting each other.

While managers keep striving hard to effectively meet ends with available resources, many a times it is just sufficient enough to find out the most acceptable solution rather than  obtain successfully the best possible goal.

Thus, in true sense, managers have to work hard to develop talents to adapt to satisficing situations rather than optimising. 'To Satisfice' means to find an acceptable solution to the situation at hand whereas 'To Optimise' means to achieve the best solution and the desired outcome. 

"Managers donot optimise, they most often satisfice.." said Herbert Simon. 

Most of the time it is not possible to get what you want. 

 

Politics is a complex game and it is either the internal or the external politics in relation to an organisation that may create an environment where managers need to compromise.

In order to obtain an amicable solution and to preserve one's positive image within the executive front, managers often settle down with satificing results rather than actually getting what should be the best outcome. 

In a large Govt company, attempts were made to replace  the public image of lethargy and incompetence with a cooperative and conducive work culture. It was although a herculean task to convince the so called veterans of the company who resisted maximum to any change. The new Manager with a vibrant aptitude and a committed approach continued his endeavours steadily and initiated certain alterations in the ongoing processes within the company environment. He started with a proposal to outsource the housekeeping (mainly, cleaning) services to ensure regular and effective hygiene and sanitation facility at the company premises. The existing personnel who were side-lined by such measure went on protest. They were warned that since such action can warrant legal actions, they should stop any protests. So, finally when the new contract was issued and the new contractor started with his ventures, the older disgruntled staff started feeding wrong information to them. the instigated them for asking for better monthly wages, welfare facility and liberal working hours. All the offline understandings and cooperative attitude that was expected from this contract went haywire. Thus a well intended measure gradually became a constant source of unease and conflict. 

Finally with minimal persuasion, the contractor agreed to continue as per the terms of contract and accepted to work as agreed.

This shows how politics can turn the whole outcome and managers often find themselves in bigger complicacies where accepting an amicable agreement is the only possible solution.    

The lesson learnt is, to practice more to refine measures to satisfice; while striving at the same time to achieve the desired goal.