Management by Walking Around
The term management by wandering around (MBWA) refers to a style of business management which involves managers wandering around, in an unstructured manner, through the workplace(s) to check with employees about the status of ongoing work. The concept explores the benefits and drawbacks of this practice in organisations.
Technique Overview
Management by Walking Around Definition
Management by Walking Around (or Management by Wandering Around) (MBWA) is the conscious commitment by management to interact with employees on a regular basis in an attempt to better understand, and act on, their issues, ideas, and concerns. There is no prescription for MBWA to be undertaken in a structured, formalised way (Peters and Waterman, 1982).
Management by Walking Around Description *
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Business Evidence
Strengths, weaknesses and examples of Management by Walking Around *
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Business Application
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Professional Tools
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Further Reading
Management by Walking Around web and print resources *
Management by Walking Around references (4 of up to 20) *
- Garvin, D.A., Edmondson, A.C. and Gino, F. (2008) Is Yours a Learning Organization?. Harvard Business Review, March.
- Jeston, J. and Nelis, J. (2008) Management By Process. Butterworth-Heinemann, Oxford.
- Katzenbach, J.R., Steffen, I. and Kronley, C. (2012) Cultural Change That Sticks. Harvard Business Review, Jul-Aug.
- Kruschwitz, N. (2012) How An “Abundance Mentality” and a CEO’s Fierce Resolve Kickstarted CSR at Campbell Soup. MIT Sloan Management Review, August.
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