The role of the manager will increasingly become that of the coach: making demands of the employee regarding new goals and then helping the employee to reach these goals.

The managers of the future are going to focus on ensuring the development of employees and organization. They will lend a hand in turning words into action and coaching the individual in reaching his or her goals as well as those of the organization.

Management is making people do something they otherwise wouldn't have done. This does not mean that the manager should return to the whip and military discipline and that the organization should rebuild the pyramids with hierarchies and long lines of command. Far from it. This means that the manager along with each employee must set goals for his or her development that harmonies with the company's overall goals and strategies. And this means that the manager regularly should hold the employee onto 'the narrow path of virtue' towards the agreed goals and help the employee to get there.

The most important task of the manager may be to create a company culture where following up is a given - not something perceived as mistrust or accusation, but rather as an offer. The role of the manager will increasingly become that of the coach: making demands of the employee regarding new goals and then helping the employee to reach these goals.

Author: Martin an independent consultant and lecturer