Could management be taught in schools?

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Henry Mintzberg is an author and academic mind that inspired a substantial amount of innovative thinking around business and management. Alongside his thoughts around categorising a manager into three different roles (see below), he also discussed in his blog that management should be taught at a younger age; allowing for a progression towards management education. 
Henry Mintzberg Manager Roles

Like Mintzberg, I am also intrigued by this notion that management can be taught earlier in our lives- however, maybe even much earlier than his discussed higher education idea. Is there the opportunity for these learning habits to be transferred at secondary school level or younger?

We are exposed to many different learning scenarios whilst at school- with opportunities to experiment with our communicative methods, be creative with our problem solving and even chances to volunteer in professional settings. As much as these skills are valuable- I believe this could go one step further and reach into the realm of management. 

Would it work?

 If you've been in a management position, it can be difficult to grab the reigns and understand the concept that you are the guide, the facilitator and the one that will be held accountable. This often leads to a substantial amount of stress and anxiety around:

a. Making sure you do a good job that meets your own expectations.

b. Impressing those that make high level decisions.

c. Understanding the impact that your leadership has on employees around you.

These are just a few of the factors- in fact, the possibilities that you will crumble under the pressure of unhappy customers, problematic scenarios or disgruntled staff is reasonably high. But can we best prepare to ensure that we are able to manage these situations professionally?
"You’ve gotta figure out what you love- and it will bring you great joy!"

                                                    - Jeff Bezos

Start them Young!

One of the best business minds of today- Jeff Bezos, discusses the idea that you have to make the most of your talents when you are young and apply this to everyday life to really leverage yourself into a position of professional success. I believe one way to do this could be to create a management pathway at GCSE level or lower.

If we allow young people to expose themselves to realistic management scenarios and allow them to perhaps make mistakes or discover skills they never knew they had, this would be widely beneficial in their early career progression and improving their understanding of the management world.

This pathway could be filled with educational courses, TED talks, guest speakers (which could even be previous students now working in management positions) and work placement opportunities. We should put our trust in young people early enough so that we, as a global entity, can reap the benefits of a better managed world in the future.

Nathan Caesar Blog

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