Professional Managers...

2019/08/27

Because I research corporate management strategy, I have many opportunities to write and speak using management terminology. Among these terms, there are some where the wording and the meaning match so perfectly that I want many people to use them. On the other hand, there are others that feel somewhat off—terms I would rather not use myself and would prefer others not to use either. One such term from the latter category that I have seen frequently lately is "professional manager." Generally, this term refers not to the "homegrown" type who joins a company and rises through the ranks to the top, but to the type of executive who is evaluated for their management skills and moves from one company to another as a leader. In the sense that they suddenly arrive at a company as the top executive, they can also be called "parachute-style" managers.

Traditionally, the vast majority of Japanese corporate executives have been the homegrown type who rose through internal promotions, making "professional managers" a minority. However, we are increasingly seeing the successes of such executives, including Eiko Harada, who moved from McDonald's Japan to Benesse; Takeshi Niinami, who moved from Lawson to Suntory; and Akira Matsumoto, who demonstrated his skills in restructuring Calbee. This is a noteworthy change occurring in Japanese corporate society. Therefore, I have no objection whatsoever to applying some kind of term to distinguish these executives from traditional ones.

However, I wonder about the term "professional" manager. To be clear, the three individuals mentioned above and others called "professional managers" are undoubtedly pros in corporate management with excellent leadership skills. Therefore, my discomfort does not stem from calling them professionals. Rather, I feel a strong sense of unease about using the word "professional"—an expression that should inherently apply to all managers—as a term to designate only them. In Japanese, the antonym of "pro" is "ama" (amateur), and in English, the opposite of "professional" is "unprofessional." Following this logic, the term implied for the contrasting concept of traditional managers would be "amateur manager" (unprofessional manager). I am likely not the only one who feels this is a rather disrespectful expression. I strongly hope that a more appropriate term will be created and become widely used.