This is in response to Richard Corcoran's inquiry about survey data
indicating an increasing lack of confidence in management the higher up one
looks...
First, because I'm new to the list, allow me to introduce myself (some of you
already know me from other lists).
My name is Fred Nickols, and I'm head of strategic planning and management
services at Educational Testing Service in Princeton, NJ. We're home to
several tests known by their initials (e.g., SAT, GRE, GMAT). I spent 20
years in the Navy where I worked as a weapons systems technician, then a
trainer, and then an organization development (OD) specialist. I retired
from the Navy in 1974 and worked for about 12 years as an independent
management consultant. In 1987, I "went inside" as the saying goes. I
joined ETS in 1990, and was Chief of Staff, Operations, until taking on my
present assignment just about a year ago.
Now, back to Richard Corcoran's inquiry about survey data indicating a
growing lack of confidence in management the higher up the ladder you go.
There is a benchmark set of survey data called "The Mayflower Data" or "The
Mayflower Study" and I will obtain the particulars and pass them along this
next week. I'm told that an increasing lack of confidence in management as
one moves up the ladder is a common finding. There is a similar phenomenon
in the staff survey data at my own company. I attribute most of it to
infrequent contact and communication.
In any event, I'll obtain the details about the Mayflower data next week and
pass them along...
Regards,
Fred Nickols
fnickols@ets.org