Bad managers will mean the loss of talented employees, a reduction in productivity and the tarnishing of staff morale if businesses don’t clamp down on the growing culture of “horrible bosses.”
According to Office Team, bad management styles need to be eliminated in order to retain valuable employees.
“Time and time again research shows that bad management is a real turn-off for employees, and can have serious implications for a companies’ turn-over, not to mention staff morale, productivity and, ultimately, profitability,” Office Team Associate Director Stephen Langhammer said.
A recent survey of almost 2,000 professionals revealed that nearly three quarters (73 percent) of employees believe that having a manager they respect or learn from is one of the most important factors in their work environment.
Furthermore, the research indicated that one in ten Australian employees would leave for another company whose managers are seen to be more inspirational.
Bad management styles can include everything from indecisiveness, poor delegations, lack of organisation and bullying of employees. These problems arise when a manager does not have adequate experience or time to manage the team, but can be addressed by training or better resource management.
Quick Team has identified five common manager personas and suggests means of working with them:
- The Micromanager: They have trouble delegating tasks, so employees should not miss deadlines, pay attention to details and keep the manager informed of all quality work.
- The Poor Communicator: With little or no direction, employees often complete assignments at the last minute because goals and deadlines were not set clear by the manager. Employees should seek clarification and diplomatically address that by providing more information upfront, stress and time in the long run will be saved.
- The Bully: The Bully is persistent on employees completing assignments his or her way, or no way at all. In this case, employees should stand up for themselves and calmly explain their rationale when offering a proposal.
- The Saboteur: Undermining the efforts of others and rarely recognising individuals for a job well done, employees need to make their contributions visible to others and form a written chain of communication with senior management.
- The Mixed Bag: Always a surprise, this manager’s mood is unpredictable. Employees should not take the boss’ disposition personally and keep a calm and composed demeanor when dealing with the manager.
Langhammer also suggests that whilst training can foster better management styles, businesses “should also reward good managers- who can be a huge asset.”
