Slow Management

Management is a practice that runs on ideas. Unfortunately, ideas that organizations must constantly change are prevalent. This can easily lead to junky ‘Fast Management’: management that is change-obsessed, attention-starved and over-hyped; that binges on mass-produced ideas; and that lacks substance. Inspired by the Slow Food Movement, this paper develops a more wholesome alternative. Slow Management is about doing less, but better management that is more thoughtful and less flashy. It emphasizes the context-specific and craft-based dimension of managerial work; the necessity of industry-specific, non-transferable competence; and the long-term and commitment-dependent nature of substantive organizational improvement and innovation.