Management mantra #1: “People are more important than shops, ships & sugar estates”

Jan 09, 2020 Letters

DEAR EDITOR,

I joined the management team of Bookers Sugar Estates Ltd when this management mantra was originated by Sir Jock Campbell (later Lord Campbell of Eskan) as head of the Booker Group of Companies, which then owned and operated the sugar estates of British Guiana. The essential message is as relevant now as it was then….and I dare say…it will remain pertinent as time goes by.
Even as we race into the ‘new age’ world of mechanisation and automation, the essential human element will retain its pre-eminence. Therefore, this must be lesson #1 for all entrants into the field of supervision and management.
An interesting anomaly in management is that while practically all managers start their employment as subordinates who like bosses who treat them well and with respect, often, when these same employees become managers, they forget what they wanted from their bosses. The golden rule of ‘doing unto others what you would like done to you’ is sometimes forgotten or ignored…often at one’s own peril!
If I were to pick the number one rule for supervisors and managers of people, this would be it by a long shot. I am often amazed at how much time and money organisations spend to train and develop supervisors and managers while ignoring the infinite power of this cost-free lesson!
Nowrang Persaud

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