Everyone involved in management is a manager, but not all of them are leaders. Leaders are only part of managers. A leader refers to a person who has a certain position and power in an organization, shoulders certain responsibilities, directly directs subordinates, and achieves established goals. We usually see chairman, CEO, president, general manager, factory director, department manager, workshop director and so on. These are leaders; Staff officers refer to those who assist leaders in management activities. You can see military staff officers in the army, experts and think tanks in enterprises, and consultants and scholars who help the government make decisions in the government. These staff officers are responsible for a lot of specific management work, through which they help leaders manage the organization more effectively.
Staff are divided into personal staff and professional staff. Personal staff can be divided into two categories: personal staff assistants and personal linear assistants. Among private staff officers, those who are limited to assisting certain functions of superiors are called personal staff assistants. Personal staff assistants are only engaged in some informal work and often perform tasks in the name of superiors. Personal assistants are usually familiar with the boss's thoughts and actions. Personal linear assistants often appear as deputy titles such as deputy managers. Their job is mainly to help managers plan comprehensive management work.
Managers who only assist in special fields are called special staff, such as market research, industrial engineering, labor and personnel, technical quality, financial audit and other departments in enterprises. Special staff should have the knowledge, ability and technology in the special field they assist. With the continuous refinement of the division of labor in modern society, the role of employees is becoming more and more important.
Leaders and staff officers are all engaged in management. The difference between them is that leaders have linear power over subordinates, and staff only have the right to suggest. Leaders are directly responsible for organizing goals, while staff officers are generally not directly responsible.
However, staff officers often directly affect the decision-making role of senior managers.