霸道總裁CEO 如何通過放權掌控全局

Business advice books don’t agree on much, but they’re practically unanimous on this bit of advice to senior managers: focus on the big things, and leave the details to your team.

能夠讓商業忠告類圖書一致認同的觀點並不多，但它們幾乎都會給高管提供這樣一條忠告：專注於大的事情，將細節交給團隊。

I’ve spent my career doing the opposite. And I believe it is largely responsible for the success I’ve had so far.

但我在整個職業生涯都採取了截然相反的做法。而且我相信，我到目前取得的成功，很大程度上要歸功於這種管理方法。

These days, when I work with young chief executives, I urge them to try my “sweat the small stuff” management method. It may seem counterintuitive, as though I am urging CEOs to act like that most dreaded creature, the micromanager. But this approach can deliver the opposite effect. In fact, I have found it builds employee trust, brings the best out of the best employees, and, most importantly, builds high-performance teams.

最近在與一些年輕CEO們合作時，我強烈建議他們嘗試一下我“關注小事”的管理方法。雖然這似乎有違常識，好像我在誘惑這些CEO變成最可怕的怪物——微觀管理者。但實際上這種方法會帶來相反的效果。事實上，我發現這種管理方法能夠建立起員工的信任，讓最優秀的員工有最好的表現，並且最重要的是，它有助於建立一支高效的團隊。

Chief executives, especially founders, often find themselves torn between two contradictory impulses. On one hand, they aspire to hire “A+” employees who will take the company to new heights with their awesomeness. On the other hand, many CEOs have a clear vision for every aspect of how their companies should be run and a wicked perfectionist streak. This means they often succumb to the temptation to get involved in every detail of the company’s operations, instead of empowering the extraordinary people they’ve just spent a great deal of energy hiring.

首席執行官，尤其是公司創始人，往往發現自己在兩種相互矛盾的衝動之間左右爲難。一方面，他們渴望找到“A+”員工，憑藉他們的非凡魅力將公司帶到新高度。另一方面，許多CEO對於公司各個方面如何運營有清晰的願景，帶有一種邪惡的完美主義傾向。這意味着，他們往往會忍不住誘惑，參與到公司運營的每一個細節，而不是向他們花大力氣聘用的人放權。

In other words, CEOs micromanage. This inevitably leads to a frustrated, demoralized, and even paralyzed organization. Here’s where a “sweat the small stuff” approach can work well.

換言之，CEO在進行微觀管理。而這將不可避免地導致公司上下滋生沮喪情緒，士氣低落，甚至陷入癱瘓。那麼，“關注小事”的管理方法，如何實施才能奏效？

As my first startup began to grow quickly, I found myself wanting to follow my perfectionist impulses without undermining my teams’ ability to get things done using their own—usually more informed—judgment. My ideas had merit, and they avoided the pitfalls of “design by committee,” which often leads to uninspiring and watered-down solutions. But they were often interpreted by my team as religious edicts and caused people to either blindly follow instead of lead or just get annoyed. So, I set up a verbal contract with all of my leaders, which spelled out the decisions I deferred to them (most of them) and a list of details that I specifically cared about (just a few).

在我創辦的第一家公司開始迅速發展之際，我希望在不削弱員工獨立判斷能力的前提下，遵從自己內心的完美主義衝動。團隊成員的確可以利用自己的獨立判斷（往往也更加明智）來完成工作。我的想法有其優點，可以避免“委員會設計”的陷阱——“委員會設計”通常只會產生令人沮喪的、打折扣的解決方案。但我的團隊總是把我的想法理解成“宗教法令”，他們要麼放棄工作自主權，盲目遵從，要麼感到憤怒。因此，我與所有管理者達成了口頭約定，詳細說明了我會聽從他們的哪些決定（大多數），以及我會特別關注哪些細節（只有少數）。

In the case of a major website redesign, for example, I gave the design and marketing teams the authority to determine the site’s organization, layout, and page flow. After all, I hired them because they were experts at this stuff; I wanted them to feel they had the autonomy they needed to do their jobs well.

例如，重新設計網站時，我會授予設計與營銷團隊決定網站結構、佈局和頁面流程的權限。畢竟，我之所以聘用他們，就是因爲他們是這方面的專家；我希望他們感覺自己擁有把工作做好所需要的自主權。

But I reserved veto power over the color scheme, graphical style, and fonts—yes, I have a small design obsession. They included me on those decisions up front. This also gave me a periodic glimpse into the status of the project overall without nagging my team. If things were off track, I would know.

但在配色方案、圖形風格和字體方面，我保留了一票否決權——沒錯，我對設計有一點熱衷。他們會提前把決定告訴我。這讓我有機會定期瞭解項目進度，但又不會打擾到團隊的工作。如果項目偏離了方向，我會提前知道。

Over time, I developed an important addition to this “contractual relationship” with my managers. For any detail which I requested involvement, I promised to respond with my feedback promptly (usually 48 hours, even including weekends). If I didn’t respond in time, I forfeited my right to override their decision later.

隨着時間的推移，我在與管理者達成的“契約關係”中增加了一條重要的補充條約。對於任何我要求參與的細節，我承諾及時做出反饋（通常是48小時，甚至包括週末）。如果我沒有按時反饋，意味着我放棄了以後推翻他們的決定的權利。

My managers loved this addition. It showed that I respected their time and authority, and also led them to put serious thought into the details I had veto power over. What if I didn’t respond in time? Then they were on the hook for those decisions as well. And I could hold them to aggressive timelines without being a bottleneck. I’m astonished by how often employees at other companies are forced to sit idly, almost as hostages, because they are waiting for the boss to make the decisions. Everyone suffers from those situations.

我的管理層非常喜歡這個補充條款。這表明我尊重他們的時間和權威，也讓他們對我有權一票否決的細節進行認真思考。如果我沒有及時反饋，那便由他們自行決策。並且，因爲我不會成爲團隊的阻礙，他們可以保持更高效的進度。在其他公司，員工就像人質一樣，往往不得不無所事事地坐等老闆來拍板，這讓我很吃驚。每個人都要忍受這種情況的折磨。

I can think of several examples in my career where this “sweat the small stuff” approach worked well. I remember the case of a launch party for a big product release during the dot-com era—the sort of event that would normally be planned by HR or the social committee. Someone came up with the notion that we should throw a blowout party in a luxury suite at the San Francisco Giants’ ballpark. But the idea felt wrong to me. We were a scrappy startup, not in need of the frivolous pampering that more financially successful (and boring) firms would choose. Plus, a box could only hold a few dozen people, meaning it would be an exclusive event instead of the big “friends and family” event I wanted.

在我的職業生涯中，我能列出許多例子來證明“關注小事”的方法是有效的。其中一個例子是在互聯網時代，公司計劃爲一次大規模產品發佈會舉行新品發佈派對，正常情況下，這種活動應該由人力資源部或社交委員會組織。有人提出，我們可以在舊金山巨人隊（San Francisco Giants）棒球場的豪華套房舉辦一場盛大的派對。但我不認同這樣的想法。我們是一家生氣勃勃的初創公司，不需要這種無聊的暴飲暴食，這是那些在經濟上更加成功（也更無聊）的公司纔會選擇的方式。此外，一間套房只能容納幾十個人，這也意味着派對將是一場獨家活動，而不是我想要的那種盛大的“朋友和家人”活動。

I decided to be closely involved with the planning. We ended up buying over 100 bleacher tickets, and renting an In-N-Out Burger truck for an impromptu party in the parking lot. Great burgers, cold beer, terrific energy, and way cheaper: the party was a success that set the tenor for all of our future company events. From that point, I decided to make the details of our company parties and retreats something I cared about.

因此，我決定密切參與活動策劃。最後，我們買了100多張露天看臺球票，租了一輛In-N-Out 漢堡卡車，在停車場舉辦了一場即興的派對。美味的漢堡，冰涼的啤酒，活力四射，而且成本更低：派對非常成功，甚至成爲公司未來舉辦活動的典範。之後，我決定將公司派對和培訓，納入我需要關注的細節之列。

Giving my employees lots of rope on the big stuff, but getting involved in the details of a few smaller items, lets me safely indulge my obsession for doing the little things right while still allowing the star performers to do great work. I admit it’s somewhat paradoxical to gain control by giving it up, but give it a try. You might find it works for you as well as it has for me. Speaking of which, let’s hope this article is no exception… hey, this is not the font that I wanted!

在大事情上給員工足夠的自主權，但在一些小事情上參與細節的管理，這既能讓我縱情於做好小事情的癡迷，又能使明星員工有出色的表現。我承認，通過放權來獲得控制權，聽起來有一些矛盾，但不妨嘗試一下。你會發現，它對你同樣有效。說到這裏，希望這篇文章也不例外……嘿，這可不是我想要的字體！

Justin Kitch is the CEO and founder , a marketplace for lifelong learning. He is the former CEO and founder of Homestead Technologies.

本文作者賈斯丁o基齊爲在線視頻教育平臺的CEO和創始人，該網站致力於推廣終生學習。他也曾是網絡主機服務商Homestead Technologies的CEO和創始人。