Are You a Micromanager?
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Stalking Supervisors
59% of employees say they've worked for a micromanager at some point in their career. -
Negative Fallout, Part I
68% of those who have worked for a micromanager say it decreased their morale. -
Negative Fallout, Part II
55% of these employees say the situation hurt their productivity. -
Signs of Being a Micromanager: It Pains You to Delegate
Give clear directions and set concrete expectations, so you develop more confidence to hand things off. -
Signs of Being a Micromanager: You "Fix" Everything
You can't let a short memo leave the IT department without making excessive corrections. Try to resist making changes for the sheer sake of making changes. -
Signs of Being a Micromanager: You Check-In Incessantly
You do not have to constantly inquire about routine matters. Restrict status update requests to times when major deadlines are coming up or a potential issue with a project has surfaced. -
Signs of Being a Micromanager: You Don't Have a Point Guard
Designate a trusted team member to take ownership of day-to-day matters, so you don't have to. -
Signs of Being a Micromanager: You Have Zero Tolerance for Small Failures
Failure is a given in today's fast-paced business environment. And it presents a great learning opportunity for employees, but only if you empower them to take risks.
The majority of U.S. employees say they have worked for a micromanager, according to a new survey from Accountemps. While such domineering practices were acceptable for prior generations, they're considered a major professional liability today. This is especially true for CIOs, given the independent nature of IT employees and the experimental demands of tech projects. So if you're perceived as always being "in the face" of your teams, the fallout could hurt your IT department—and your career. "Bosses micromanage for many different reasons," says Max Messmer, chairman of Accountemps and author of "Motivating Employees for Dummies" (John Wiley & Sons). "No matter how good their intentions, taking a heavy-handed approach typically hurts employee output, job satisfaction and, as a result, retention efforts. Personally making sure every 'T' is crossed might help avoid some mistakes. But the costs associated with failing to trust your team can have a longer-term impact." To avoid this, consider the following five telltale signs of being a micromanager, along with advice to rise above this. More than 450 U.S. employees participated in the research. For more about the survey, click here.