Many managers felt that the emergence of new managerial ideas during the 1980s signaled the rejuvenation of U.S. business. By readily adopting innovations such as total quality programs and self-managed teams, managers believed that they were demonstrating the kind of decisive leadership that kept companies competitive. But such thinking doesn’t jibe with the facts. American managers did not take charge in the 1980s. Instead, they abdicated their responsibility to a burgeoning industry of management professionals.
A version of this article appeared in the January–February 1994 issue of Harvard Business Review.
