Managers tend to follow an organization's set of rules and fall back on the wisdom of their decisions as being “this is what has worked for us in the past.” Managers rely on operating procedures to direct their choices, and generally do not challenge the processes by which the rules were made. Managers are task-oriented and treat every person the same.
Leaders, on the other hand, believe the organization’s rules to be “guardrails” in which to conduct business. They often challenge an organization with “what if” questions and spend a good amount of time seeking new solutions, even if the process is not broken. Leaders do not treat every person as the same and believe in an individualized approach to their team’s oversight. Not to suggest preferential treatment, a leader also ensures nothing offered to one could not be duplicated to another if warranted.
