What is a manager?

A manager is a philosopher allowed to do (or apply) shoddy science while being paid too much money. That is Matthew Stewart's conclusion in The Atlantic. It's not a rant, but rather an insightful essay about the fundamental flaws of management as a science. There are also some interesting points concerning the history of management and common management training (getting your MBA), which, according to Stewart, only does two things:

- You make lots of new acquaintances. You build your rolodex. This is, of course, a very good thing, whatever your career.

- You show the world that you are committed to this kind of work: The MBA is like a tribal warrior's initiation scars.

But concerning the skills you need to run a business, Stewart thinks that you would be better off with a solid grounding in the humanities, which brings me to the (now rather old) observation that the humanities are the true life sciences.

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