Manage by Flying Around

Since the title of this blog is manage by walking around, kudos to Haruka Nishimatsu, the president and CEO of Japan Air. According to a CBS News article, he practices management by walking flying around:

“If management is distant, up in the clouds, people just wait for orders,” Nishimatsu told CBS News through a translator. “I want my people to think for themselves.”

And meeting his people means popping into planes, chatting with flight attendants, even sorting the newspapers.  “I’d like to just find what is going on at the front line,” he said.

This is an admirable attitude but Nishimatsu goes a step further, recognizing that a good leader should motivate employees by treating everyone equally. Unlike the American car company CEOs who used private jets while asking for billions in bailout funds, Japan Airlines’ CEO comes to work on the city bus. And when he cut employee salaries to reduce expenses, he also cut his own. Nishimatsu even eats in the company cafeteria.

Too many managers act like they are better, smarter, or more entitled than everyone else. With that attitude, maybe they should get rid of all of their employees and do the job themselves. Instead, I believe that you should hire good people and let them do their jobs. And don’t ask anyone to do something that you wouldn’t do yourself.

Although I’ve never flown on Japan Airlines, I bet you it’s extraordinarily well run. It wouldn’t even surprise me if Nishimatsu refilled my drink while I was on board.