The public sector in the Kingdom suffers from the dominance of individuals who follow rules from unknown management schools. They are a group of people who have lived a long time and occupied managerial positions for long periods. They believe that the best administration is dominance and authority, and any alternative methods will lead to a lack of discipline and loss of power. Control and dominance to these people are mechanisms of unconscious self-defense, used to protect their positions and to conceal the fear and worry they suffer from.
They are sometimes categorized as bureaucrats even though bureaucracy means a system of government in which most of the important decisions are made by state officials rather than by elected representatives. Bureaucracy is a classic school of administration. Yet it seems that those people, who are no big fans of management schools, decide on what suits their opinions and personal beliefs and so they later impose them on others.
The problem with administrators and managers is that when they are intimidated, their fear is reflected in their performance and decisions. They tend to become more negative, which enhances the problem of unconscious fear that harms them physically and psychologically. Their disturbed status then reflects on the social and economic fields, the level of growth and development in the country and on other minor details. Often their fear of responsibility becomes a trait that appears in their exaggerated anxiety toward any decision and they overstate disadvantages in comparison to advantages.
Their routine is easily recognizable. It’s like going round in circles without reaching a solution for any problem. People such as these are well known for their loyalty to rules and slavish submission to regulations. In other words, they lack innovation and creativity. They also occupy their positions for long periods of time because they tend to be passive and peaceful. They have mindsets that memorize the rules and bylaws until they become walking databanks.
If you want to fire or get rid of a successful manager or a team player, all you have to do is to employ a number of individuals with the above descriptions to work with him. They soon crush his spirit and vanquish his dreams and plans. Using the threats and propaganda of the cold war they have mastered, they cause him to heart attacks and chronic health problems.
Their No. 1 enemy is decentralization and automation. Creativity, participation in the decision making process and encouragement of the teamwork are something they don’t accept. The greatest obstacle to development, reform and change is a lack of awareness, not the inability to read or write. General education and awareness contribute to the behavioral development of managers and leaders. They ought to be flexible, creative and willing to expand their vision to become good leaders.
