ajcjobs > BlogBreak > Archives > 2007 > August > 03 > Entry
Micromanager issues?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
More and more people complain of being micromanaged. What is the psychology of this disorder? Does the micromanager not have enough to do in their job so they feel they have to do yours as well? Does this boss have trust issues? Is this person a workaholic who stays day and night poring over every aspect of his department, seeking weak links, fearful of not meeting the expectations of his micromanaging superiors?
How does a worker survive in a supervisory straight jacket and avoid the stress and disruption caused by micromanagers in the workplace? Is jumping ship the only option?
A healthy manager knows the abilities of his staff, builds them up in areas of weakness and lets them handle their jobs with minimal assistance. It’s important that a manager trust his people to be professionals until proven otherwise. If he knows the employee is weak in writing skills, review their work before it goes out, help them fix the errors and then let it go. Empowerment is the key.
The true micromanager reads, edits and rewrites the employee’s work before it goes out. He then takes the glory when things work out well and distributes the blame when it doesn’t (If only I had competent staff). The micromanager doesn’t pay attention to employee development only survival of self (or self-glorification - I work so hard, because no one else can do it as well as I can). Micromanagement is the opposite of empowerment; it often involves giving people responsibility without giving them the full power needed to be successful in their work.
Do you micromanage or have you been micromanaged? Micromanagement is one of the most difficult dysfunctional behaviors to deal with in the workplace. If you’re the micromanager, you’re headed for a breakdown when you can’t manage down to the level you really want to. Your employees roll their eyes and may tolerate you if it’s just too much trouble to look for another job. Among the micromanaged, your morale is in the toilet and you long for freedom from oppression and another job. Maybe a solution is a support group like micromanagers anonymous - but really, can you imagine the meetings?
Comments
Commenting is now closed for this entry.
By Bill Lampton, Ph.D.
August 13, 2007 1:39 PM | Link to this
As I provide communication training for companies nationwide, my seminar participants become wide awake when I talk about micromanagement, which I classify as a major communication problem. Most of the attendees are seeking a solution—to maintain their jobs and their sanity. One reason I can talk about it with credibility is that during my management career one of my bosses was the ultimate micromanager. How can you please someone so dictatorial? You never will completely. As long as you are on that job, though, flood the MM with detailed reports, written summaries, and data. They’ll respect your initiative, and start hovering over other workers temporarily. However, don’t breathe too easily…they’ll never let you out of their sight completely. And they’ll never rate your work A-plus. Another tip: Keep your resume updated, as micromanagers are unstable enough to get rid of you quite impulsively.