Our own management theory

My management philosophy is simple.
     Surround myself with good people who know what there doing
     Let them do their job
     Give them the support they need.

I'd write a book on it but I'm not sure how long it would be, what with just 3 bullet points.

Management theories come and go... and come and go... and come and go.
They used to have fancy names.
Now they usually come with initials, always capitalized.
Everyone gets excited, everyone attends training, consultants get paid, and a few months later it's back to business as normal, waiting for the next theory to come along.

It's been said that being a union president is like running a small business.  It's also been said that a union president is only as good as his or her executive board and delegates.

I could tell you about all the wonderful things our eboard and delegates do, but unlike me, they shy away from notoriety.

Let me tell you about one night last week.
We had a delegate meeting at the office and after that, our Treasure and our Secretary, Donna 1 and Donna 2, worked on the books in one room and VP Melissa and I were in the other room discussing union issues. Our Political Liaison, Carol, was in Rocky Hill, representing us at a training session run by Amy Clary, from our Washington office.
At one point, Melissa and I called a member who was in a bit of a jam.  We spoke with him for 30 minutes and to be honest, Melissa handled most of the call and really didn't need me.

Our Local is small and our local is young, but our local is active, learning, and growing.  We are a voice in the AFL-CIO, in AFT Connecticut and in AFT in Washington.  We are well connected with our sister Locals, and our state and national union and political leaders.

We don't need a management theory, we have people who believe in what they are doing, know how to do it, and have the support of the members.