Managerial grid and Zhuge Liangs Art of management: integration for effective project management

Low Sui Pheng School of Building and Estate Management, National University of Singapore, Singapore Ben S.K. Lee School of Building and Estate Management, National University of Singapore, Singapore
States that much of the existing management literature was written entirely from a Western perspective without any reference to practices in the East. Explains that, in the booming East Asian market, project managers from the West would need to pay special attention to Oriental beliefs, cultures and philosophies. Attempts, for the purpose of integration, to put together the managerial grid framework from the West with an ancient Chinese strategic treatise written by Zhuge Liang 1,600 years ago. Suggests that there are many similarities between the Managerial grid and Zhuge Liangs Art of management when used to resolve problems related to project management.
may be handicapped by their lack of relevance when applied in the Eastern context. The aim of this paper is to provide an insight into how effective project management can be achieved by integrating Zhuge Liangs Art of management with the Managerial grid propounded by two management theorists from the West, namely Blake and Mouton (1964). It seeks to examine the basic principles of the ancient Art of management and the Managerial grid for integration and establish their relevance for project management. In the process, it will apply these two works to problems commonly encountered in project management.

Introduction
The Chinese expression Shang Chang Ru Zhan Chang is translated to mean the marketplace is a battleeld. Because the marketplace, in the eyes of the Chinese, is a battleeld, military strategies are held in high esteem for guiding business operations. Many of the principles enunciated in military strategies are, in fact, already commonly applied in Chinese societies, among which are the 16 strategies found in Zhuge Liangs Art of management. Zhuge Liang was a prominent statesman during the period of the Three Kingdoms (AD220-280). Since Zhuge Liangs philosophy follows the Taoist concept which portrays interrelatedness and relativity, according to which there is no absolute good or bad thing in the world, this would mean that his strategies are not limited only to military affairs but are equally applicable in many different elds, including project management. Similarities which may be drawn between project management and military strategy include: organizations must be well organized and managed; organizations and wars require strategies and tactics; the leadership of an army and an enterprise has an important inuence in shaping success; they both need high quality and committed people; they both thrive on information. Zhuge Liangs Art of management contains specic strategies for governing a country . This can be used to overcome the obstacles one would encounter when ruling a country just as a project manager would face obstacles in managing a project. Lau (1996), in examining the management styles of indigenous bumiputra contractors in Malaysia, has suggested the adoption of Zhuge Liangs 16 strategies by these contractors in overcoming their weaknesses. It is the contention of this paper that much more could be gained if Western management wisdom could be cross-fertilized with Oriental thinkings and philosophies. Without this integration, Western management principles

History of Zhuge Liang

Zhuge Liang, an outstanding statesman and military scientist, also called Zhuge Kongmin, was a native of Lang Yia but lived at Nan Yang during the last years of the Eastern Han Dynasty (AD25-200) and the period of the Three Kingdoms (AD220-280). He studied in detail the Chinese classics during his stay in Nan Yang and became talented and knowledgeable, rich in his thoughts and subtle in analysing critical political situations. When Dong Zhuo rebelled, followed by many other military leaders, Zhuge Kongmin worked as a farmer and sought neither promotion nor reputation, and was known to the people as Sir Wo Lung, meaning sleeping dragon. His name eventually became known to Liu Bei, an imperial descendant of the Han Dynasty, with whom he agreed to work on the strategy to revive the Han Dynasty At that juncture, Cao Cao was in . command of the rebels in central China. Zhuge Liang acted as Liu Beis counsellor and allied with Sun Quan to inict a heavy loss on Cao Cao at the Red Wall on Chang Jiang. Thereafter, he helped Liu Bei capture the two states of Jing and Yi. Having at length seated Liu Bei on the throne, Zhuge Liang served as the Prime Minister and was bestowed the title of Marquis. He was a genius and showed creativity in his administration, affection to his people, was genial in his dealings with public officials and frugal in his own life. For more than

Management Decision 35/5 [1997] 382391 MCB University Press [ISSN 0025-1747]

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20 years, he devoted himself ardently to internal reforms with an attitude of sincerity, strict in manner but merciful in action. With an emphasis on the penal code and economic development, the nation under the governance of Zhuge Liang grew rapidly . To seek unity, he rst pacied the disturbance in the south and then undertook several expeditions to restore central China. Although he did not succeed in reviving the Han Dynasty, he achieved considerable distinction as an outstanding statesman and military scientist. He also invented a distinguished attacking and defending formation known as Ba Zhen Tu. Apart from his royal virtues, Zhuge Liang exercised tremendous inuence in the political, military and literary history of China. In his life time, Zhuge Liang wrote many articles, among which Jiang Wan Wu Shi Pian (Fifty traits of a general) and The art of management sixteen strategies were two well-known military and political treatises (Wang, 1995).

sounds ignored. A wise ruler must, therefore, be able to pick out details from very small matters and be able to identify grievances behind a simple complaint. The idea is to use the stability of the internal to achieve the peace for the external and vice versa. An ability to see the brightness of daylight but not the suffering of subjects is not seeing. The same goes to being able to hear the thunder and not the crying of subjects is not hearing. Hence, the art of running a country is to be able to listen to the views and opinions of subordinates and ponder over them before committing to any actions. There is a saying that a wise man would not have any xed thinking, but adopt the views of others as his own. This does not mean that a ruler should be ckle-minded but rather he needs to have his own priorities and standards.

Strategy 4 acceptance of advice

The principle of acceptance is to be able to listen to advice and to adopt the strategy as appropriately suggested by subordinates. A ruler would, therefore, need to have subjects who dare to criticize so that when his actions are not appropriate, the criticism can prevent the ruler from adopting a bad policy Thus, if . a ruler is unable to accept frank and honest comments from his upright subjects, he would then be surrounded by evil and fawning villains which will bring misfortune to the country The ruler would consequently . not be able to listen to the true views of his subjects who refrain from reporting the true picture to him. Even Confucius thinks that it is not shameful to learn from those who are less intelligent. Good medicine often tastes bitter and good advice is often unpalatable.

Zhuge Liangs Art of management

The 16 strategies propounded by Zhuge Liang in the Art of management are outlined below (Wang, 1995):

Strategy 1 governing a country

Governing a country is similar to that of running a household. The most important element in a household is to get the fundamentals right and the rest of the related matters would then follow suit. Hence, the foundation of a household would depend on the head. In Zhuge Liangs writings, the north star is representative of the ruler. It is supported by six other stars which are likened to senior ministers and people are like the myriad other stars in the night. The position of the north star remains constant as a constant term of reference.

Strategy 5 being perceptive

Being perceptive means to be able to tell different colours apart and also to differentiate noise from melodies. Confucius once said that A wise ruler is not worried that others are unable to comprehend him, but he should be concerned as to whether he is able to understand others. To be able to understand others, the ruler should be perceptive. However, to be perceptive, one should pay attention to the motive of each of his immediate subordinates. A ruler needs to be extremely careful in deciding what is right and what is wrong.

Strategy 2 relationship between the ruler and subjects

A ruler must treat his subjects benevolently and, in return, the subjects must serve their ruler with loyalty Those who are not loyal . would not be able efficiently to serve the ruler. To achieve this, the ruler should take care of the interests of his subjects, exercising benevolent rule and treating them as his own family members. In essence, respect for each other is much more critical than just obeying and giving orders.

Strategy 6 managing people

To manage people, a ruler must educate them and highlight what is expected of them. He must let his subjects understand his intentions and plans so that they can appreciate government policies. In order for his subjects to understand his intentions, there must be a set of comprehensive laws for them to follow. When his subjects are united and won over, the country would prosper.

Strategy 3 to view and listen

The basic principles of viewing and listening is to be able to see minute matters and hear soft sounds that are produced. This is because small matters are often missed and soft

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Strategy 7 selection of people

The principle of selection of people is to place forthright, capable people into key positions to control crafty sycophants and rapacious villains. A country with capable leaders is just like a house that is supported by strong pillars. If the pillars are too small, then the house would collapse just as would a country if it is governed by incapable people. It is therefore important for the ruler to seek out capable people to assist in the running of the country .

committed in their endeavours. Likewise, when punishing a subordinate, he should also understand why he is being punished. In this way, people would be loyal to the ruler and adhere to his instructions.

Strategy 11 on emotions
A ruler should be dignied and not irascible. He should constantly be conscious of his own bearing and be in full control of himself. This means that he may still show his indignation but not lose his head. The essence of this strategy is such that the ruler must control himself both in times of happiness and anger. He may therefore be joyous but not frivolous. He should not jeopardize the countrys interest just for the sake of venting his personal grievances. Neither should he be preoccupied with his personal affairs so much so that he forgets about state administration.

Strategy 8 performance evaluation

For a country to remain strong, prosperous and free from corruption, it is important to evaluate the performance of government officials. Good officials with outstanding performance need to be promoted, whereas those who performed poorly should be dismissed. The criteria for evaluation of officials should be based on the general feelings of the people. A ruler who only sees the petty gains is short-sighted and is likely to be one who will use his likes and dislikes as criteria for evaluating officials. This will inevitably lead to a corrupt administration dominated by treacherous officials. Hence, when evaluating performance, the criterion should be based on whether they can contribute to the success of the administrative service. It is dangerous for a ruler to be swayed by personal feelings and preferences.

Strategy 12 controlling chaos

In order to control chaos, a person must rst settle the immediate problems before solving those that are further away He should also . correct himself rst before controlling others. In so doing, he can then gain respect from others. Reforms, if any, should not be carried out abruptly as these may cause further chaos. Reforms should be carried out carefully according to prevailing conditions of the state. Moreover, a violent course of action is not the right way to deal with a chaotic situation.

Strategy 9 military administration

A country needs to have a strong army in order successfully to defend itself. A strong army would be able to defend not only the people but also help prevent internal strifes. Mobilizing the army and defending the country are extremely important matters where decisions should not be made rashly A mili. tary move must be planned carefully in advance. This enunciates one important aspect of Zhuge Liangs principles, namely prudence and the need for good planning. The army must have the support of the people, the troops must be well trained and the soldiers understand the rewards and punishments that would be given. The ruler, on the other hand, must be aware of the enemys strategy and also be familiar with the situation of the battleeld. Thus, a small army with good preparation and meticulous planning should be able to defeat a larger but badly trained enemy .

Strategy 13 education and orders

A ruler who is lax with himself but strict with his subordinates is practising a bad policy . Whereas if he is strict with himself before issuing orders, he is practising a good policy . A ruler who does not practise what he preaches would nd it very difficult to enforce his orders. If this happens, then the country would be in chaos. Hence the essence of this strategy is to watch oneself before ordering others.

Strategy 14 dealing with difficulties

A state must establish laws and regulations. Such laws must be obeyed once established and anyone who disobeys them should be punished accordingly Such actions should be . carried out swiftly and decisively so as to prevent disobedience from causing greater and further damage.

Strategy 15 looking ahead Strategy 10 rewards and punishments

A ruler who wants to have a clean and efficient administration must be able to reward the good and punish the wrongdoer. Rewards and punishments must be seen to be fair and equitable. The subordinates must know when they would be rewarded so that they will be A ruler who is not far-sighted or does not plan carefully is bound to have worries. However, one should not consider problems that are not directly related to him or his position. For a plan to succeed, one should take into consideration the likely reasons that would cause the plan to fail. By being able to foresee what

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likely factors would affect the plan, one would be able to take the necessary precautions to prevent these factors from happening again. This is especially true of the ruler as all hopes of his subjects are on him. If he does not strive for advancement or plan ahead, the rest of the country will have to suffer under his poor leadership.

Strategy 16 observation
The essence of this strategy is that one should be observant in order to be able to compare and understand the characteristics of different people or environment so as to make the best out of them. For example, one need not go to a river to bathe as long as one can wash the dirt from ones body or to have a sage as a minister or a general as long as he is intelligent and capable. This means that a ruler should be able to put the talents of various people to good use so that they can contribute their best to the country This is because dif. ferent people have different experiences and capabilities. A clever leader should make use of the talents of various people to overcome difficulties.

The managerial grid

The managerial grid, developed by Robert Blake and Jane Mouton (1964), is among one of the most well known behavioural approaches to management. The two most useful dimensions proposed by Blake and Mouton (1964) are concern for production and concern for people (Malain et al., 1989). These two dimensions represent the dilemma that a project manager faces. He has to achieve the objective of the project (production) and at the same time, manage his subordinates (people). Thus the dimension, concern for production, would include results, bottom line or prots. It covers both the qualitative and quantitative aspects of a project. Hence, in a building project, it may take the form of efficiency in design, the time required to complete a section of the work planned, ensuring that there is no cost overrun, or the attainment of a specied level of quality Con. cern for people may be revealed in many ways. Some project managers concerns are shown in their effort to ensure that project team members get their job done. Getting results based on trust, respect, obedience, understanding or support is a manifestation of concern for people. Depending on the character of concern, project team members may respond with enthusiasm or resentment, involvement or apathy The grid is a set of . theories about how people use their intelligence and skills in working with and through other people for results. It forms a matrix of possible management styles as shown in Figure 1. From the total of 81 grid positions,

ve are being distinguished as being of key importance. These are: 1,1 Impoverished management. Managers in this position have little concern for people or productivity, avoid taking sides and stay out of conicts. They do just enough to get by . 1,9 Country club management. Managers in this position have great concern for people and little for production. They avoid conicts and concentrate on being well liked. Their goal is to keep people happy . 9,1 Authority-compliance. Managers have great concern for production and little for people. They desire tight control in order to get tasks done efficiently They consider . creativity and human relations unnecessary . 5,5 Middle-of-the-road management. Also known as organization man management. Managers in this position have medium concern for people and production. They attempt to balance concern for both but are not committed to either. 9,9 Team management. This leadership style is considered ideal. Such managers have great concern for people and production and work to motivate employees to reach the highest levels of accomplishment. They are exible and responsive to change, and understand the need to change. Blake and Mouton (1964) concluded that the leadership style at grid position 9,9 (team management) is the most effective for organizations. The following sections examine the behavioural elements and principles of the 9,9 grid position and how these may be applied to project management.

Behavioural elements of the 9,9 managerial grid

The behavioural elements of the 9,9 managerial grid are explained below: Initiative. In the 9,9 orientation, initiative is exercised in a strong, pro-organizational manner. The leader is likely to be eager, vigorous and able to sustain a signicant capacity for work. Initiative may arise externally to the team or from any of its members, thus not relying solely on the team leader. Nevertheless, the major cause for a lack of initiative, if any, is because each project team member is predominantly concerned with his own part and is unlikely to generate the use of techniques that have implication for the project as a whole. There is no need to wait for instructions from the project manager. Inquiry. Inquiry is comprehensive and in depth, ensuring that all bases are evaluated in an analytical manner that increases the likelihood of understanding the problem. The approach to understanding tends to be carried out on a team basis. This means

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Figure 1 Managerial grid styles Concern for people 9 8 7 6 5 4 Impoverished management (1,1) 3 Effective production is unobtainable because people are lazy, apathetic and indifferent. Sound and mature 2 relationships are difficult to achieve because (human nature being what it is) conflict is inevitable 1 1 2 3 Concern for production 4 5 6 Dampened pendulum (5,5) (middle of the road.) Push for production but dont go all out. Give some but not all; be fair but firm Team management (9,9) Production is from integration of task and human requirements

Country club management (1,9) Production is incidental to lack of conflict and good fellowship

Task management (9,1) Men are a commodity just like machines. A managers responsibility is to plan, direct and control the work of those subordinated to him 7 8 9

that the various project team members are able to question regarding areas beyond their expertise. This would enable the project team members to view the problem from different perspectives and to solve it efficiently . Advocacy. Convictions are developed and expressed, and reservations are discussed in a logical and convincing manner. Strong advocacy increases the likelihood that every viewpoint receives the attention it merits. In this case, ideas and information would be presented quickly This approach . would enable the project manager to gain wide respect for his convictions, opinions and values which are being held unless there is contradictory evidence. Nevertheless, the project manager should also be open to alternative points of view so that he would not be viewed as being arrogant or rigid. Decisions. Decisions may be reached and made known in a way that appears almost off-hand, the reason being that by thorough inquiry and advocacy, a decision is selfevident rather than the leaders sole possession. When the decision affects various people, a 9,9 decision seeks understanding and agreement from the relevant people.

Critique. A 9,9 orientation includes the idea of feedback but goes beyond it to incorporate the larger concept of critique. Critique refers to the continuous examination and re-examination not only of decisions but also the how and why Continuous examina. tion ensures that the process is effective at all points. In the 9,9 orientation, critique is not restricted to the leader telling others what is being done well.

Principles of the 9,9 managerial grid

Principles of the 9,9 managerial grid are discussed under the following headings: Open communication is essential for the exercise of self- and shared responsibility. One of the most elusive organizational variables is the process of communication by which one individual affects the perceptions of another through materials or agencies in symbolic ways (Andersen, 1972). But poor communication has long been a problem in commerce and part of it is due to the way the business world is organized. The project team may be made up of people from different rms with varying contributions and much information has to pass among them. Only when communication is free and open can project team members have

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access to the information that is pertinent to their interests and responsibilities. They can make maximum contribution only when the information required for sound thinking is made available to them. Complete, accurate and timely information is also necessary to co-ordinate the numerous operations in a project. The project manager would need to rely heavily on feedback from his project team members and thus if there is no liberal communication ow, the project manager would not be aware of what is going on. If information ows for a project can be streamlined, it also helps in the accumulation of detailed records to provide facts in case a dispute develops at a later stage. Conicts are solved by confrontation, with understanding and agreement as the basis of co-operative effort. It is inevitable that differences will arise when people get together to share ideas openly Choices must be nar. rowed and one selected from several. When conict becomes intense, mutual trust and respect can be severely eroded, communication distorted, and feelings of personal responsibility substantially reduced. Confrontation means taking a problem-solving approach to differences and identifying the underlying facts, logic or emotions that account for them. Conicts within a project team can best be avoided by careful planning. For example, the project manager must inform the project team where the project is heading, keeping the project team members updated on key decisions such as changes in objectives, changes in schedules or budget limits. With proper planning, the project manager can side-step the problem before it develops. Being responsible for ones own action represents the highest level of maturity and is only possible through widespread delegation of power and authority. The ability to make maximum contribution depends on one voluntarily and spontaneously exercising initiative. This is possible when the capacity for responsible action permeates through every level. Then opportunities to be more productive and creative can be acted on by those who see them. Shared participation in problem solving and decision making stimulates active involvement in productivity and creative thinking. This involves open, full involvement and commitment of ones resources. Participants feel that they have a stake in the outcome of a decision or an action, leading to the notion that people support what they help create. When team-wide understanding and agreement have been reached, a consensus is present, which is supported without reservations. Such shared participation stimulates the kind of creative

thinking that produces optimal solutions. Whitemore and Ibbetson (1972) indicated that the project manager should keep in mind that shared objectives and participation in decision making is the strongest motivation after money The project man. ager should initiate a policy that enables all his project team members to know the planning of work schedules and the technique of working. Thus the project manager is to enable the rest of the project team members to go beyond the project specication to the underlying reasons as to why the project is essential. Management by objectives (MBO). Management by objectives is the operational way of bringing a goals orientation into widespread use. This means that managers identify and agree on the goals that are to be pursued and set in motion concrete activities for achieving them. When commitment is attached to the goal, then one is drawn to it, seeks to achieve it, and makes the necessary effort to reach it. When MBO through goal setting is done in a sound manner, the goals of individuals and the goals of organization become more integrated and harmonious. Thus, in project management, the project manager should endeavour to formulate a common goal to be shared by all the project team members, so that all can view themselves as members of the same boat crossing a river. They would then be more likely to consider the difficulties faced as their own and be more willing to make personal sacrices when needed. Learning from work experience through critique. Critique is a process of stepping away from or interrupting an activity to study it in order to learn what is happening, or to see alternative solutions for improving performance and also, to anticipate and avoid activities that have adverse consequences. Critique is a natural way of reecting on what is happening or what has happened. When project team members have widespread understanding of and skills in utilizing critique, it becomes possible to accelerate the rate at which they learn and to progress. However, this may not be used if there is a crisis and the time needed for deliberation is unavailable.

Integrating Art of management and Managerial grid

In the West, there is already a proliferation of English language literature pertaining to leadership styles. The same cannot be said of literature emanating from the Orient (Low, 1995). It is difficult at this stage to show that the strategies from the Art of management have indeed beneted project managers in

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the East. Unlike the East, many authors in the West have examined the various traits and leadership styles of effective leaders. It may therefore be more practicable to link the strategies from the Art of management with the principles from the Managerial grid. Both the strategies and principles are then applied to resolve some of the problems that are commonly faced in, for example, a building project, and as identied by Bennett (1985). Figure 2 shows some of the major problems in project management identied by Bennett (1985). It also highlights the attempt at integrating the Art of management and the Managerial grid in resolving these problems

Differing perceptions
Perception is more than seeing. It involves seeing as. In other words, people interpret what they see in order to make sense out of it. As past experiences contain a vast amount of information, people tend to simplify and categorize what they can remember. From this, people tend to have a stereotyped view of a person based on past experiences with other people in that category This has seri. ous implications for professional relationships. Stereotyping of individuals based on professional labels would add to the difficulties that are hindering communication within the project team. Often, professionals fence around one another, trying to reach compromises, without openly discussing their views and concerns, and this often results in a failure to appreciate one anothers position. This can be seen, for example, in a meeting between an architect and a quantity surveyor to discuss the cost plan. The architect may perceive the cost plan by the quantity surveyor as an imposition on his design. He may feel that it is wrong for the quantity surveyor the only non-designing professional in the team to set the cost limits. However, the quantity surveyor may perceive that his cost plan will help the architect achieve a building that delivers value for money and with his all-round knowledge of construction, he should be able to make an impartial judgement on costs. Strategy 5 being perceptive indicates clearly that a ruler must be perceptive so that he may differentiate noise from melodies. It can be seen that different perceptions about the professionals may hinder the effectiveness of the project team. As mentioned in strategy 13 education and orders, the project manager should set good examples for the rest of the professionals to follow. Thus the project manager must be aware of what is happening in the project. Instead of just looking at the surface of conicts, he should ponder more deeply to seek out the actual reasons for the conicts. One of the ways is to listen attentively to the views of each professional and nd out the actual motive behind each move. Inquiry is also one of the ways of overcoming differences in perceptions. Moreover, inquiry under the 9,9 managerial grid style is often comprehensive and in depth. The problems faced would be analysed and this increases the chances of understanding the problem. This grid style would also enrich the quality of inquiry as it allows professionals to view the issue from each others perspective.

Conict of aims and objectives

Different professionals in industry have to carry out highly specialized tasks which require specialized methods. The growing complexity of projects has created additional pressure on the professions to develop standardized procedures in an effort to maintain standards in their own area of operation. Due to this, the objectives and methods of various professionals are not in harmony with each other. In addition, different professional roles tend to be interdependent, that is, one role may not be performed without the other. Thus, problems can arise when there is a conict of interest between what they should do and what others think they should do. Professionals are pulled in different directions as their allegiance to their clients and to their own professions compete with their loyalty to the project team. Conicts often arise due to differences in aims and objectives of the professionals. According to the principles of the 9,9 managerial grid style, a project manager would be able to overcome this difficulty by adopting MBO. The project manager would need to identify common goals and objectives for the project team so that the professionals can work towards them. Once these goals are understood and agreed on, the professionals would no longer be in a dilemma. Similarly it , was mentioned in Zhuge Liangs strategy 1 governing a country that a ruler must get the fundamentals right and the rest of the related matters would follow suit. As the leader of the project team, the project manager would need to set the fundamentals by laying down objectives that are common to the project team. Apart from identifying goals, he must also provide a rm leadership to enable the project team to work together. Strategy 14 dealing with difficulties complements strategy 1. It further denes the means of achieving the objectives laid down by establishing rules and regulations to guide the project team.

Lack of understanding between project team members

Project team members tend to have their own views on a particular project or problem and are unclear about the impact of their role on

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Figure 2 Applying Managerial grid and Art of management for project management

Conflicts of aims and objectives

9.9 Managerial grid style Management by objectives

Art of management Strategy one governing a country Strategy 14 dealing with difficulties

Differing perceptions

9.9 Managerial grid style Inquiry

Art of management Strategy 5 being perceptive Strategy 13 education and orders

Lack of understanding

9.9 Managerial grid style Shared participation Critique

Art of management Strategy 6 managing people

Inadequate co-ordination

9.9 Managerial grid style

Art of management Strategy 15 looking ahead Strategy 9 military administration

Poor communication

9.9 Managerial grid style Open communication

Art of management Strategy 4 acceptance of advice Strategy 8 performance evaluation

the whole project. Different viewpoints from the professionals would prevent the project team from effectively working together. Thus, for example, architects are often criticized for being too concerned with aesthetics rather than buildability The quantity sur. veyor, on the other hand, is being criticized for taking a narrow nancial view of project

management. There are also considerable conicts and ambiguities in the professional roles. On the one hand, these roles may be rather rigid but they may also appear to be uncertain and subject to conicting pressures. There have been forces encouraging rigidity in professional roles such as the professional institutes, procurement methods

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and standard forms of contract. For instance, the standard form of contract lay down the roles precisely as to who is responsible to whom and for what. Thus, as a project manager, he would need to resolve this problem of lack of understanding among the professionals as it may lead to a series of technical problems that can be expensive and can delay the progress of the project. Strategy 6 managing people suggests that the project manager should educate the professionals on their roles and highlight what is expected from each professional. By educating and highlighting, it allows the professionals to appreciate each others role and respect it accordingly Similarly the principle of shared . , participation from the 9,9 grid style, may help to overcome the misunderstanding of the consultants role. Through shared participation, it can be ensured that the roles played by each profession are easily understood. Another way is through critique, where the project team members are able to move away from the happenings to view the project as a whole. This stepping away from an activity would enable the professionals to have a better understanding of the roles played by other professionals.

work sequences so that he would be able to foresee areas that need to be co-ordinated in order to prevent bottlenecks. Strategy 9 military administration states that any military move must be carefully planned and have the support of the people. It also implies that the project manager must have the support and understanding of his project team members before implementing any measures to enhance the co-ordination of works. In so far as the managerial grid style is concerned, the principles of shared participation and critique as applied above in lack of understanding are equally applicable here.

Poor communication
Professionals are frequently inundated with information. It comes in quickly, often poorly presented and requires a lot of time and effort to interpret it. In turn, the professionals are responsible for passing on the information such that it can be easily understood, accepted and acted on by the next person. Communication problems are compounded by differences in the knowledge, technical skills and vocabulary of the professionals. For example, the professional training of architects tend to emphasize design and its visual communication, whereas that of the building services engineers and quantity surveyors stresses quantitative techniques. Thus, from the outset of their careers, these professionals are learning different languages and communication barriers inevitably set in. Most of the responsibilities for building and maintaining real communication links lie with the project manager. There are a few ways in which the project manager can enhance project communication. One of the ways is that the project manager should be a good communicator, that is, he must recognize the importance of the interpersonal communication network within the project team. Adopting the principles of the 9,9 management grid style, he should ensure that there is open communication within the project team. To facilitate open communication, the project manager must recognize that communication is a two-way process. The project manager does not just give orders but rather, the project team must be able to understand and participate. Feedback is also necessary for continuing team effort. Applying the fourth strategy of Zhuge Liang acceptance of advice, the project manager must be able to listen and accept the comments from other members of the project team in order to ensure that there is effective communication. As stated in the strategy, if the project manager is not able to accept frank comments, then the other members would not give feedback to him.

Inadequate co-ordination
Projects frequently bring together many different kinds of work involving different technologies. It is not practical for any one organization to have detailed knowledge and practical skills in all areas of works. As a result, the industry tends to be fragmented into small specialized rms (Bennett, 1985). It is the task of the project team to ensure that the work of the specialized teams are well coordinated so that there would not be wastage and delay to the project. As an example, this is especially true when nominated sub-contractors are being used on building projects. Most of the nominated sub-contractors do their own design work and their drawings are often nalized much later. It is common to nd chases, holes and upstands in the nominated sub-contractors drawings but not on those used by the main contractor. This would lead to time wastage and costly cutting out. It may create conicts and frustration between the parties involved. Thus, there is a need for proper co-ordination by the project team members to make sure that such irregularities are minimized. According to Strategy 15 looking ahead, Zhuge Liang stated that a ruler should be far sighted and should plan carefully so that he would not have any short-term worries. Thus, one of the ways of ensuring proper co-ordination is to be able to look ahead and foresee which are the areas of work that require coordination. To be able to achieve this, the project manager must be well versed with

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Low Sui Pheng and Ben S.K. Lee Managerial grid and Zhuge Liangs Art of management: integration for effective project management Management Decision 35/5 [1997] 382391

Another strategy that is applicable is strategy 8 performance evaluation. Instead of evaluating the performance of the consultants, the project manager should evaluate whether there is effective communication within the team. Some of the variables that can be evaluated to determine if there is good communication include: Feedback this would determine whether the project team members have sufficient feedback from the ongoing project in order to be aware of what is happening. Feedback would also include those between the project team members themselves. Accuracy of information the information obtained from the communication channels should be sufficient to facilitate decision making. It should neither be too much or too little and it should be easily available to the person who needs it.

Conclusion
This paper highlights the strategic principles from Zhuge Liangs Art of management and Blake and Mouton (1964) Managerial grid for application in project management. According to Blake and Mouton (1964), there are a total of ve grid styles which the project manager may adopt as his leadership style. Only the most optimum style, the 9,9 managerial grid style, was adopted in this paper even

though a project manager may display more than one leadership style. The 9,9 managerial grid style was chosen because it is the most ideal style and it involves team management which is similar to that of project management. The 9,9 managerial grid style was analysed in two components: the behavioural elements of a manager who adopts the 9,9 grid style and the principles governing this style. Sixteen strategies from Zhuge Liangs Art of management were similarly highlighted for possible application in project management. The study shows that many principles of the Managerial grid and strategies from the Art of management are actually quite similar. As shown in Figure 3, most of the principles complement each other and may offer to the project manager a greater perspective when applying the strategies in the project. The principles are then applied to some of the problems that are commonly faced in project management in the hope of resolving conicts that occur quite frequently The extent to which Blake and . Mouton (1964) and Zhuge Liangs teachings can be applied to enhance the effectiveness and leadership qualities of the project manager will, however, depend very much on a good understanding of both the Managerial grid and Art of management.

References
Anderson, K.E. (1972), Introduction to Communication Theory and Practice, Cummings Publishing Co., CA. Bennett, J. (1985), Construction Project Management, Butterworths, London. Blake, R.R. and Mouton, J.S. (1964), The Managerial Grid, Gulf Publishing Co., Houston, TX. Lau, M.C. (1996), View and perception of nonbumiputra contractors over the weakness and success of bumiputra contractors, Master Builders Journal, Master Builders Association of Malaysia, second quarter 1996, pp. 32-6. Low, S.P. (1995), Lao Tzus Tao Te Ching and its relevance for project leadership in construction, International Journal of Project Management, Vol. 13 No. 5, pp. 295-302. Malain, P.J., Cooper, C. and Cox, C.J. (1989), Managing People at Work, The British Psychological Society and Routledge Ltd, London. Wang, X.M. (1995), The Art of Management: Sixteen Strategies of Zhuge Liang, Asiapac Books, Singapore. Whitemore, D.A. and Ibbetson, J. (1972), The Management of Motivation and Remuneration, Business Books, London.

Figure 3 Similarities between Managerial grid and Art of management

Managerial grid Principles Open communication Resolving conflicts Learning from work experience Being responsible Shared participation Management by objectives Art of management Strategies Strategy 4 acceptance of advice Strategy 3 view and listen Strategy 16 observation Strategy 13 education and orders Strategy 6 managing people Strategy 1 governing a country Strategy 14 dealing with difficulties

Behavioural elements Advocacy Critique Strategy 5 being perceptive Strategy 12 controlling chaos

Application questions
1 Does military/philosophical/spiritual literature have a part to play in business thought and practice? 2 For western businesses, is work such as that of Zhuge Liang helpful in dealing with Asian markets?

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