[saidajigumi]

> The task of a good manager is to run an employee up to the point of the Mental limits and make sure all those other limits are at 5% so they can maximize the employee output.

I find it ironic that you describe the very real negative effects of burnout, but then describe a recipe for inducing ... burnout.

May I suggest that you read Tom DeMarco's book Slack? It specifically addresses what I'll term "operational fallacies" like this regarding knowledge work, and covers making an organization more effective (doing the right work) vs. merely efficient (doing lots of work) by adjusting the character and pace of work.

[hkmurakami]

I personally feel that a manger's responsibility to his team is to have enough people so that an individual doesn't have to be pushed to his/her mental limits like this (and also rebuff demands from upper management that go beyond the team's reasonable limits).

It's a difficult balance between one's responsibility to his team members and to the bottom line of the company, but at least for me, a manager (I guess), I like to side with my team. Shareholders can expect a "reasonable return" (like it says in J&J's credo), not "maximum return".

"When we operate according to these principles, the stockholders should realize a fair return"

http://www.jnj.com/wps/wcm/connect/c7933f004f5563df9e22be1bb...