As modern humans, we have spent the last decades living with unbelievable technological progress. Do you also sometimes think that, despite these leaps in development, humanity at its heart has not really developed? Particularly considering the recurrent military conflicts and other negative events? Or in regard to how we handle resources on our earth?
It seems to be a huge meta-consideration that contains the questions listed above. But it is actually really about change – and changing behavior. In the last 39 blogs, we dealt with change from different perspectives. Every meta question or objective is about how there have to actually be further steps if something is seriously to change. Every person who makes it their profession to deal with change should, in our opinion, make themselves aware that humanity has evolved over thousands of years. This is important to consider, as we still have evolutionary components in our human network, or brain. If you want change, you should be realistic and down-to-earth, without losing sight of what is feasible.
There is probably a question in the air like: What does that have to do with “humanity in management”? “Everything!” Is our answer. Because: Humanity in management may also appear to be a meta-level topic, but it doesn’t have to be. It can be felt in daily life, and here we even meet both “evolutionary humans” and “modern humans” in management. Unfortunately, there is still an option for humans to “bash their heads” in a literal and figurative sense. One is actual war, and the other is the socialized “war” in management systems that are kept from more and sometimes a less intricate level. If you support professional people in these environments, you will find that there are always the same topic triggers: Claims on power, money, jealousy, greed, anger, fear…
So there are fundamental issues that have remained, despite massive technological progress and also social and democratic attainments. Does that mean that humans were, are, and at their heart will remain like that? To make humanity in management crystal clear with a very different example: Does it testify to developed humanity to give your team members and individuals an over 100% burden for many months or years and turn a blind eye to the fact that, perhaps intricately, but tangibly the typical processes of burnout candidates are in progress? Yes, it’s true that it always takes two. One who does it and the other one who lets it happen. But we are referring to management here and therefore an uneven distribution of power. So what shapes humane management today? There is lots of talk about “empowerment”, “belonging”, “diversity”, and “agility”. However, whether these are also experienced is a very different question. In addition, to this day it is unofficially required that the human resource works or has to work.
And here we come full circle: Be honest – do you act humanely as a manager? If yes, in what actual ways?
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©Monster Ztudio