Struggles of managerial being and becoming : Experiences from managers' personal development training

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the struggles of managerial identity in relation to the process of becoming/being a manager, and the personal conflicts involved within this process. Design/methodology/approach – In a qualitative, longitudinal project, five managers were studied for two years using interviews and observations. This was undertaken before, during, and after their participation in personal development training. In total, 62 interviews and eight half‐day observations were conducted. Findings – The study puts emphasis on the role of management training in providing templates for “how to be a manager”, but it also illustrates the double‐edged and complex role played by context in managerial being and becoming. On the one hand context shapes managerial identity; on the other hand, context might operate to dilute the identity an individual manager wishes to assume. Research limitations/implications – The study focuses on only five managers in two organizations. This small sample limits the generalisabilty of the research. Practical implications – Management training tends to be based on the idea that management concerns the acquisition of competencies, techniques and personal awareness, while managerial practice is more fluid and contextually based. There is a challenge for organizers of all types of management training to bridge the gap between a fixed idea of what it is to be a manager and how management is actually practised. Originality/value – The longitudinal and in‐depth qualitative approach facilitates an important contribution to understanding issues in developing a managerial identity.