Should A Manager be Loved or Feared?

From my point of view Neither is required. Being loved or feared has no bearing on the success of an organization and the effectiveness of a manager.
It would be much better if the team members LOVED the system(s) they work under and FEARED failing to execute under a proven system that they had an opportunity to create or improve.

The best compliment a manager can expect is that they are organized and fair. That means that the manager made it very easy for each individual in their team to focus on and be successful at what they are delivering. They achieve this by effectively communicating standards and values and by providing the resources and training required by each person to succeed.

The best managers know how to make work fun. These managers have dynamic systems that can deliver the corporate objectives efficiently and effectively, systems that are open to improvement by the people who deliver them. The system is so efficient and effective that new team members would not need to have previous experience and/or existing team members wouldn't need to be flexible, multi-tasking workaholics to succeed.
After all there is little time or room for fun if when staff are frequently asked to shift priorities followed by intermittent calls of "Fire" that require them to work late.

Good managers defend their employees actions as they understand that they are responsible for and accountable to their employees actions. Employee failures are failures in systems that require improvement.

Good managers are on a path of discovery. They practice with organizational models and methodologies.

Are you a practicing manager?

Dave Soteros is President of Alrym Consulting.
He believes that great companies have great leaders who return value to customers and the greater community.
www.alrym.com