Reimagining Management: key lessons from Work It Out, the documentary by Samuel Durand, PGE 2020
At a time when employee expectations are evolving faster than ever, organizations are under constant pressure to transform, and engagement has become a strategic priority, one question stands out: how can we restore meaning to the role of the manager?
This question was at the heart of a screening and discussion event around the documentary Work It Out, directed by Samuel Durand, PGE 2020.
Drawing on company testimonials, field experiences, and inspiring examples from around the world, the documentary invites viewers to take a fresh look at contemporary management. One powerful conviction emerges: management is not an administrative function, but first and foremost a human journey.
About Samuel Durand
A graduate of GEM's PGE in 2020, Samuel Durand has spent more than seven years exploring the transformations of work and emerging management practices around the world.
His journey began in 2019 with a six-month learning expedition during which he met more than one hundred pioneers of the future of work to better understand the changes reshaping organizations.
Upon returning to France, he chose to share his insights through accessible and engaging formats: six documentaries, two graphic novels, a photography exhibition, a newsletter, podcasts, a Comedy Club, events, and keynote talks.
His ambition is simple: to shine a light on initiatives that are reinventing work and inspire organizations to create environments that are both high-performing and deeply human.
Through Work It Out, he continues this mission by encouraging everyone to challenge their vision of management and discover practices observed in companies across a wide range of sectors and cultures.
(French language documentary) Password: WIP6
A Role in Search of Meaning
The figures speak for themselves: today, nearly one manager out of two no longer wishes to pursue a management role.
For many years, management was seen as the natural path for career progression. Today, however, it is becoming less attractive. Why?
Because many professionals are promoted for their technical expertise without being adequately prepared for the human realities of leadership. Managing people, their aspirations, emotions, and development needs cannot be improvised.
The documentary also highlights the limits of the Peter Principle, which suggests that individuals are often promoted until they reach their level of incompetence. This reality can weaken both employees and organizations alike.
One conclusion becomes clear: management should no longer be a mandatory career step, but a deliberate professional choice. Organizations have every interest in creating career paths that value expertise as much as management responsibilities.
Leadership and Management: two complementary realities
One of the evening's key lessons was the distinction between leadership and management.
Leadership is a mindset and a posture. It is the ability to inspire, mobilize, and create meaning.
Management is a role. It involves creating the conditions that enable a team to succeed collectively.
Successful organizations need both.
As Samuel Durand emphasized, management is something that can be learned. It is a demanding profession that requires personal commitment, humility, courage, and a genuine desire to help others grow.
Management as a powerful driver of performancee
The documentary highlights an often underestimated reality: the quality of management has a direct impact on collective performance.
Poor management leads to:
- Distrust
- Disengagement
- Loss of confidence
- Long-term decline in performance
Conversely, high-quality management promotes:
- Employee engagement
- Skills development
- Well-being
- Productivity
Management is therefore far more than an HR topic. It is a strategic lever for performance, retention, and organizational transformation.
The rope team spirit: a new way to manage
One of the documentary's most striking images is that of the mountain guide.
A guide reassures, sets a direction, supports the team, and moves at the group's pace. They do not climb the mountain for others; they create the conditions for others to succeed.
This metaphor perfectly illustrates the role of the modern manager.
The objective is no longer to control, but to support.
A manager's mission is to help team members grow, build their confidence, and enable them to thrive in a safe environment.
This approach brings us back to several fundamentals: listening, respect, recognition, stress management, understanding cognitive biases, and authentic communication.
Autonomy is not declared, it is built
Another central theme of the documentary is autonomy.
Drawing inspiration from Montessori principles, this approach is based on a simple idea:
"Help me to do myself."
Autonomy does not mean the absence of management.
It requires:
- A clear framework
- Explicit objectives
- Training
- Support and coaching
- Trust
- The right to make mistakes
Experimentation then becomes a powerful driver of learning and accountability.
The manager's role is to create an environment where individuals have the resources, skills, and confidence needed to take initiative and continue developing.
From controller to facilitator
The documentary also explores the principles of Servant Leadership.
Beyond a term that is sometimes debated, the idea is straightforward: the manager serves the success of the team.
This requires a significant shift in mindset:
- Listening more
- Supporting rather than directing
- Guiding rather than imposing
- Working with employees rather than simply managing them
The quality of relationships becomes central.
Transparency, role modeling, regular feedback, and mutual trust create the conditions for lasting engagement.
The liberated company: beyond the myth
The documentary also offers a nuanced perspective on self-managed and decentralized organizations.
While autonomy and distributed decision-making can bring significant benefits, they cannot succeed without strong foundations:
- Training
- Coaching
- Constructive conflict management
- Open communication
- Information transparency
- Change management support
Autonomy is never the absence of rules.
On the contrary, it relies on a clear framework, well-defined responsibilities, and a culture of trust.
The examples featured in the documentary demonstrate that the goal is not to eliminate management altogether, but to create systems that progressively empower teams while maintaining an appropriate level of support.
Trust, autonomy, and the right to make mistakes cannot remain abstract concepts. They must be embodied by leadership and reflected in decision-making processes, evaluation criteria, recognition practices, and organizational culture.
Work It Out shows that the most sustainable transformations are those supported consistently and coherently by organizational leadership.
Management is first and foremost a human relationshiptS'il fallait
If there is one idea to take away from this event, it may be this:
Management is fundamentally a human-to-human relationship.
In a rapidly changing world of work, the most successful organizations will be those capable of fostering trust, autonomy, accountability, and a sense of belonging.
Re-enchanting management is not a utopian vision. It is a necessity for building more effective, resilient, and human-centered organizations.
What comes next?
Beyond methods and tools, Work It Out reminds us that management is a skill that develops throughout a professional career.
Would you like to strengthen your management practices, support the development of your managers, or build a management culture adapted to tomorrow's challenges?
GEM supports individuals, managers, executives, and organizations through its GEM Executive Education programs.
Leadership, team management, change management, managerial skills development, and tailor-made programs: the teams at GEM Executive Education help organizations address their transformation, engagement, and performance challenges.
Want to learn more?
Contact the GEM Executive Education team to discuss your needs and discover solutions tailored to your context.
Contact: exec-ed.custom@grenoble-em.com
Because the management of tomorrow is not improvised: it is built, learned, and continuously cultivated.
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