Mintzberg’s Managerial Roles
This article explains the Mintzberg Managerial Roles, developed by Henry Mintzberg, in
a practical way. After reading you will understand the basics of this powerful
management tool for a manager.
What are managerial roles?
The Canadian management expert Henry Mintzberg is an authority in the field of
organizational structures and organizational design.
He has written many business books on various organizational management theories.
Henry Mintzberg distinguishes ten key managerial roles that managers and executives
fulfil.
These Mintzberg Managerial Roles are subsequently divided up into three categories:
the interpersonal category, the informational category and the decisional category.
Six work-related characteristics
In 1973 Henry Mintzberg carried out empirical studies into the managerial behaviour of
CEOs in five private and semi-public organizations.
From those first studies he was able to identify six characteristics that define the work
life of managers. Later there had been criticism of these studies, because Henry
Mintzberg had limited himself to five organizations only.
It would only involve a small sample size as a result of which the results could not be
representative for organizations in other industries or hierarchical management
positions. The six characteristics are described below:
1. Managers process open-ended workloads; they are capable of doing a lot of work
under demanding time constraints.
2. Managers start up their own activities and subsequent actions. These activities are
varied and fragmented and they are relatively short in duration.
3. Managers prefer to avoid information from reference materials such as notes and
documents.
4. Managers prefer verbal communication, such as one-on-one talks, telephone
conversations and meetings.
5. Managers maintain relationships primarily with subordinates and external parties
and secondary with their superiors.
6. Managers like being involved in preparatory decisions.
Environment
The studies show that the actual behaviour of managers is determined by their
environment, is action driven and they do not always show ordered or methodical
behaviour.
Managers have to deal with many varied and short-term activities. It appears that
managers preferably transfer information verbally and that they do not always make
fact-based decisions.
Even management techniques are not always applied effectively.
10 Mintzberg Managerial Roles
In addition, Henry Mintzberg describes the operational work of managers in terms of
managerial roles.
The activities that are carried out by those managers are key elements. The way in
which the Mintzberg Managerial Roles are carried out, are influenced by individual and
situational factors. Henry Mintzberg initially divided the ten managerial Roles roles into
three sub categories:

Interpersonal contact

Information processing

Decision making
For example, subordinates, other managers, the board of directors, the works council,
customers and suppliers.
The following Mintzberg Managerial Roles are primarily concerned with interpersonal
contact:
1. Figurehead
As head of a department or an organization, a manager is expected to carry out
ceremonial and/or symbolic duties. A manager represents the company both internally
and externally in all matters of formality.
He is a networker but he also serves as an exemplary role model. He is the one who
addresses people celebrating their anniversaries, attends business dinners and
receptions.
2. Leader
In his leading role, the manager motivates and develops staff and fosters a positive
work environment. He coaches and supports staff, enters into (official) conversations
with them, assesses them and offers education and training courses.
3. Liason
A manager serves as an intermediary and a linking pin between the high and low levels.
In addition, he develops and maintains an external network.
As a networker he has external contacts and he brings the right parties together. This
will ultimately result in a positive contribution to the organization.
Information processing
According to Henry Mintzberg, the managerial role involves the processing of
information which means that they send, pass on and analyze information.
Managers are linking pins; they are expected to exchange flows of vertical information
with their subordinates and horizontal flows of information with their fellow managers
and the board of directors.
Furthermore, managers have the responsibility to filter and transmit information that is
important for both groups. The following Mintzberg Managerial Roles fall under process
information:
4. Monitor
As a monitor the manager gathers all internal and external information that is relevant to
the organization.
He is also responsible for arranging, analyzing and assessing this information so that he
can easily identify problems and opportunities and identify changes.
5. Disseminator
As a disseminator the manager transmits factual information to his subordinates and to
other people within the organization.
This may be information that was obtained either internally or externally.
6. Spokesman
As a spokesman the manager represents the company and he communicates to the
outside world on corporate policies, performance and other relevant information for
external parties.
Decision-making
Managers are responsible for decision-making and they can do this in different ways at
different levels. The leadership style is important in decision-making.
An authoritarian leader is sooner inclined to make decisions independently than a
democratic leader. The following Mintzberg Managerial Roles fall under decisionmaking:
7. Entrepreneur
As an entrepreneur, the manager designs and initiates changes and strategies.
8. Disturbance handler
In his managerial role as disturbance handler, the manager will always immediately
respond to unexpected events and operational breakdowns. He aims for usable
solutions.
The problems may be internal or external, for example conflict situations or the scarcity
of raw materials. .
9. Resource allocator
In his resource allocator role, the manager controls and authorizes the use of
organizational resources.
He allocates finance, assigns employees, positions of power, machines, materials and
other resources so that all activities can be well-executed within the organization.
10. Negotiator
As a negotiator, the manager participates in negotiations with other organizations and
individuals and he represents the interests of the organization.
This may be in relation to his own staff as well as to third parties. For example salary
negotiations or negotiations with respect to procurement terms.
Skills
According to Henry Mintzberg, the skills of individual managers do not always contribute
to the success of an organization.
Effective managers develop themselves based on protocols for action. In addition, they
use their leadership roles independently and they know to use the right role for the right
situation.
The Mintzberg Managerial Roles make it easier to understand what the nature of their
work is. Mintzberg’s objective was to observe and analyze managerial behaviour.
By studying the Mintzberg Managerial Roles, it is possible to find out in which areas
managers can improve themselves and how they can develop the right skills.
Mintzberg Managerial Roles is a tool for managers
The 10 Mintzberg Managerial Roles provide a tool for managers and other people in
leading positions. By understanding their own roles, they can find out how much time
they devote to the activities below:

Directing subordinates

Attending meetings as a Liason

Representing the organization

Transmitting information

Analyzing information

Allocation of resources

Negotiating resources

Problem solving

Developing new ideas

Promoting the interests of the organization
Furthermore, it is important that the manager answers the following questions. This will
provide more insight into his own qualities:

Is the time distribution in sync with the manager’s own perception of it?

Is there a balance between time flow and work distribution?

Which tasks boost the manager’s energy?

Which is the most satisfying task of a manager?

Which task does the manager most unpleasant?
In practice a certain managerial role will more predominant than the other. In addition to
preference, this also has to do with the interdependence of factors, such as the position
of the manager within the organization, the activities, the composition of the team and
the size of the organization.
One of the managerial roles mentioned is always visible and in some activities, multiple
roles at the same time are possible.
It’s Your Turn
What do you think? Do you recognize the Mintzberg Managerial Roles in today’s
companies? And if so, how do you understand and develop these? What are your
general results and learning lessons? Are the basics the same or are there additional
success factors?
More information
1. Alexander, L. D. (1979). The Effect Level in the Hierarchy and Functional Area
Have on the Extent Mintzberg’s Roles Are Required by Managerial Jobs. In
Academy of Management Proceedings (Vol. 1979, No. 1, pp. 186-189). Academy of
Management.
2. Bass, B. M., & Stogdill, R. M. (1990). Handbook of leadership. Free Press.
3. Grover, V., Jeong, S. R., Kettinger, W. J., & Lee, C. C. (1993). The chief information
officer: A study of managerial roles. Journal of Management Information Systems,
10(2), 107-130.
4. Mintzberg, H. (1989). Mintzberg on management: Inside our strange world of
organizations. Hungry Minds Inc.
How to cite this article:
Mulder, P. (2016). Mintzberg Managerial Roles. Retrieved [insert date] from toolshero:
https://www.toolshero.com/management/mintzberg-managerial-roles/
Video from Alanis Business Academy simple explanation
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NgkQYRqxKTs
There are many roles a manager has within an organization. Henry Mintzberg describes ten specific
managerial roles most commonly seen within organizations. This lesson will discuss each of these roles
and what behaviors are associated with them.
Henry Mintzberg's Managerial Roles
There are many roles a manager has within an organization. Performing these roles is the basis
of a manager's job. To be effective at these roles, a manager must be a complete businessperson
by understanding the strategic, tactical and operational responsibilities he or she holds. While not
always explicitly stated in a manager's job description, at any given moment a manager might
have to be a coach, a strategic planner, a liaison, a cheerleader, a conflict manager, a realist, a
problem solver, an organizer, an optimist, a trainer and a decision maker. These roles can change
from day to day, but one thing is for sure: a manager must understand all of his or her roles and
how to perform them effectively. This means that a manager must have a global understanding of
all business functions, organizational goals, his or her level of accountability and the appropriate
way to serve both internal and external clients of the organization.
Henry Mintzberg spent much of his career researching the managerial roles and behaviors of
several chief executive officers, or CEOs. Mintzberg discovered that managers spent most of
their time engaging in ten specific roles. He was able to then classify these roles into three
categories, including interpersonal, informational and decisional roles. To better understand
these roles, let's look at how they are applied by Bernard the Boss as he goes through his daily
routine as a manager at a local grocery store.
Example of work
Figurehead
Mintzberg’s Management Role
Approvals of budget, plans, etc
Leader
Inspiring your team to meet goals
Liaison
Co-ordinate the Cross-Functional Teams
Monitor
Evaluate the daily KPI dashboard
Disseminator
Inform the team about a problem with KPI and assign
roles
Spokesperson
Communicate the KPI issues with higher managers.
Entrepreneur
Initiate and execute digital transformation
Disturbance Handler
Resource Allocator
Negotiator
Resolve a discord between two team-members.
Cut budget from a non performing asset
Talk with the clients to ask for extention of project
deadline