Royal Mail strike action – reaction from CMI

13 October 2009 - Blaming management for the problems is too easy an option, but there needs to be a management and leadership revolution if the UK is to meet the economic and political challenges it currently faces.

News this morning that postal workers at Royal Mail intend to strike follow claims that the organisation is being run “by a management which is failing”.  Central to the dispute is the belief that leadership styles within Royal Mail amount to dictatorship and bullying.

Reacting to the news, Ruth Spellman, chief executive of the Chartered Management Institute (CMI) says:

“It is all too easy to blame management when times are tough – they are after all the face of an organisation and can make easy targets.  Managers are the ones with responsibility for steadying the ship in uncomfortable times and sometimes this means making unpopular decisions.

“However, it is not acceptable for leaders to hide behind poor performance using it as an excuse to impose change.  As recent examples have shown, across both public and private sectors, we need a management and leadership revolution if we are to stand any chance of meeting the economic, social and political challenges facing the UK.

"CMI research shows that high targets and increased pressure to perform can lead to excessively dominant management styles. A significant contributory factor, too, is that managers are significantly under qualified, compared to other professionals.  In the worst case scenario, bad management and over ambitious targets may encourage people to cut corners, to the detriment of the organisation and those it serves. Managers need to set an example of strong but fair leadership and ensure that short term external factors do not result in long term damage.”

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Further information:
Mike Petrook / Jo Bowles, Institute Press Office
Tel: 020 7497 0496; outside office hours: 07931 302 877
Email: press.office@managers.org.uk 

NOTES TO EDITORS
• The Chartered Management Institute (CMI) is the only chartered professional body in the UK dedicated to promoting the highest standards of management and leadership excellence.  CMI is the guardian of the National Occupational Standards for Management and Leadership and sets the standards that others follow  

• As a membership organisation, CMI has been providing forward-thinking advice and support to individuals and businesses, for more than 50 years, and continues to give managers and leaders, and the organisations they work in, the tools they need to improve their performance and make an impact  

• As the only organisation to offer qualifications from Level 2 (GCSE) to Level 9 (PhD), CMI is committed to equipping individuals with the skills and knowledge to be exceptional managers and leaders.  Qualifications and accreditations such as Chartered Manager, combined with products such as CMI’s Continuous Professional Development scheme and the online support resource, ManagementDirect, support the development of management and leadership excellence across the UK  

• Through in-depth research and policy surveys of its 81,000 individual and 450 corporate members, CMI maintains its position as the premier authority on key management and leadership issues