I personally don't think reactive management is bad thing especially when a project fails and it has to go through the repairing procedures. However, it is better to avoid going through the reactive management system by following the preventative methods way ahead. Therefore, it is necessary to be cautious about accomplishing a project from its initial stage so that it doesn't have to go though the failure, hence the company can save extra cost, time and resources to make up for it. 

In order to tackle the balance of documenting and actually fulfilling a task, it is vital to be very organized and have time management and proper communication skillsets. Individuals have to open up about their schedules and personal issues/concerns ahead of time and be very proactive by making the best use of their own time. Every individuals should be collaborative about meeting the same goal of the company by being open and flexible. 

In my opinion, solely relying on reaction is bad. However, the concept of reactive managing is needed. Because reactions can move into becoming preventions. If there is a repeated failure of something in the documentation and it is being seen in the work produced, then reactive management dictates to address the problem and solve it. This can be taken a step further to preventative management if a root cause is identified and then dealt with. This will prevent any future work from exhibiting the same mistake. This way, by reacting to the issue and solving it, then addressing the root cause, can create a more efficient document and improve most processes within projects.

I don't think reactive management is always a bad thing when it comes to deadlines. If the SOPs are able to help alleviate most of the problems, I think having some one review the SOPs that can delay the project and have a plan already in place to mitigate the risks of missing deadlines are important. Yet at the same time, things can be missed or an issue arises that was not even consider before. I don't think that management should always be reactive but in some situations, it is unavoidable with unforeseen circumstances or issues. I always believe that SOPs and training should be done ahead of any execution of a process or procedure to avoid any common issues. I also believe that SOPs are a living document and should be revised once a new issue is discovered while performing some tasks.