Managing

Mintzberg calls attention to numerous popular but false
views about the nature of managerial work, separates fact
from folklore, and provides the best information yet
published on what managers do and how they do it. He
analyzes models, characteristics, and approaches to
managing. He examines commonalities and differences in
managing in various contexts, including business,
government, health care, and social services. By
shadowing 29 managers through a day in their lives, he
reveals how managing is affected by many factors -
including national and industry cultures, organizational
differences, level of the manager in the organization,
and personal styles - and examines the various strategies
that managers adopt to deal with these factors.
Mintzberg then identifies the main "conundrums" or
dilemmas that managers must wrestle with (such as
delegating versus retaining control, balancing order and
flexibility, and gathering more data versus needing to
take action) and describes how managers deal with those
conundrums. And he offers provocative and powerful new
understandings of what makes managers effective and
ineffective.