Leaders need to "go to the source"

Having grown from being an analyst to a forecast team lead, I always used to think where to draw a line between micromanagement and delegation; then I came across the following article from WSJ and it cleared the mist

‘On April 30, associates who were gathered in a conference room handed Mr. Dimon summaries and analyses of the losses. But there were no details about the trades themselves. "I want to see the positions!" he barked, throwing down the papers, according to attendees. "Now! I want to see everything!"

When Mr. Dimon saw the numbers, these people say, he couldn't breathe.’

Seeing the data raw in addition to prechewed analysis can have enormous impact on perceptions. That's not to minimize the importance of analysis and interpretation. But when discontinuities defies the logic, nothing creates situational awareness faster than seeing with your own eyes what your experts are trying to synthesize. The raw ingredients are critical to success.

BUT is this micromanagement? You bet! There's difference between this kind of micromanagement and being a control freak. In the former, leaders want to see — and feel — what's going on with their own eyes and gut; they want to draw upon their own experiences and expertise. In the latter, they want a greater command of detail in order to tell people what to do. The best micromanagers go to the source, so they can see, listen, and understand better; the control freaks do it to remind people that they run the whole show.

Yes, there's something vaguely mistrustful and distrustful about insisting on a diet of raw data rather than a richly prepared presentation of analytics. The core message — that you want/need to see for yourself — may feel disempowering to some. But there's a fundamental difference between trusting your people and trusting their data.

May be there is a reason why great chefs visit the farms and markets that source their restaurants!!!