Macro Manager, Micro Manager, Manager of Managers

Macro Manager

A boss or supervisor who lets employees do their jobs with minimal supervision. Macro managers are thought of by some employees as superiors who do not give them enough support or feedback to do their jobs effectively, while others may be glad to be trusted and left alone. A macro manager is the opposite of a micro manager, a supervisor who constantly looks over employees' shoulders and is often perceived as controlling and overly critical.

The term "macro manager" can also describe someone who runs a global macro hedge fund. Global macro managers need to have a broad knowledge base to understand big-picture influences on investment performance in the global marketplace. Such influences include political events, government policies and the way different countries' central banks function. George Soros, Julian Robertson and Michael Steinhardt are well-known global macro managers.

Micro Manager

A boss or manager who gives excessive supervision to employees. A micro manager, rather than telling an employee what task needs to be accomplished and by when, will watch the employee's actions closely and provide rapid criticism if the manager thinks it's necessary. Usually, the term has a negative connotation because an employee may feel that the micro manager is being condescending towards them, due to a perceived lack of faith in the employee's competency. A micro manager may also avoid the delegation process when assigning duties and exaggerate the importance of minor details to subordinates.

By contrast, a macro manager defines broad tasks for employees to accomplish and then leaves employees alone to do their work. The macro manager has confidence that he or she has hired competent workers who can complete the same task without being continually reminded of the process.

Manager Of Managers - MOM

A class of financial intermediary that hires professional investment managers to oversee aspects of a client's investment fund. More specifically, the MOM tracks the performance of each investment manager and has the power to fire ineffective managers and then hire replacements on a client's behalf. Using a MOM to handle investments funds is an alternative to hiring a single investment portfolio manager that makes all the asset management decisions.

For example, suppose that a teacher's union hires a MOM to invest in its pension fund. The MOM then hires a number of investment managers, such as a bond expert, a money market expert and a large-cap stock expert; each has the responsibility of managing the particular asset class in which he or she specializes.

Because no single manager is an expert at investing in all asset classes, using a MOM allows clients to have an expert asset manager working on each aspect of an investment at all times.

Courtesy - Investopedia