Command and control management styles literally can kill people

That headline was a little bit drastic re: command and control management, so let’s kind of outline the steps before we reach the conclusion.

First off, you need to know what “command and control” management is. Usually it refers to a very “old school” type of management, although in reality command and control hasn’t gone anywhere and is very much how most managers still approach their roles. It usually refers to a focus on orders, deliverables, tasks, respect for the hierarchy, and “accountability” being confused with “screaming.” Now look — none of these aspects of command and control are essentially bad. Some employees need these elements, and some respond well to them. Command and control persisted for so many years because it does work and make sense on some level. If you get paid to do a job, and you fuck up doing that job, someone is allowed to dress you down. Right?

In the last 10–20 years, though, command and control has faded — albeit only a little bit. You see the rise of The Gig Economy and you see more people chasing flexible work arrangements. Those two concepts (only two of many) go directly against command and control, which would logically value seat time over “working remotely” or something like that. The sheer fact that all these people are moving to freelance gigs — running away from the…