What To Do When You Have A Bad Boss

Bad boss or manager is probably the most common cause for employees resigning. A major percentage of attrition rate is due to bad managers or incapable bosses and not because of organizational policies.

Don’t most of us feel that the manager’s job is a cakewalk and you could definitely do better than them?

The point is, how much do you actually know about the manager’s job, responsibilities and stakes? What you probably don’t realize is that you are probably only looking at the visible tip of the iceberg and judge that. However, the actual bulk of it that is underwater remains unknown to you and the people around. You are a victim of lack of perspective.

Perspective Across the Globe

A popular job portal conducted an international poll and the question was: “In your current or most recent job, do you think you could do a better job than your manager?” – and the percentage of people that agreed to the statement are as follows:

• France: 72%
• Netherlands: 74%
• Germany 83%
• U.S. 84%
• India 87%

These numbers prove that a large chunk of working professionals do not respect their boss nor appreciate the effort a manager puts in for the team.

The Employees Never Knew

The tip of the iceberg might be a fancy office, flexible work times and the freedom to bark orders to the team or just fire someone. But here are a few things that a manager oversees and you might not have known:

1. Turnover: As much as retaining the excellent performers in the team is important, managers must also protect the team from members that are becoming liabilities in order to maintain the quality of the team.
2. Bonus & Raises: Used as a retention tool by managers to ensure that they do not lose their prized employees. Managers must ensure that the company sustains the cash flow and financial stability in order to give bonuses.
3. Stagnant Post: Certain businesses do not have career growth opportunities and hence sees high turnover. Managers have to keep training new employees every year or two.
4. Miscellaneous Tasks: Getting necessary paperwork and operational tasks done that are not specified in your job description can get difficult to implement as most employees tend to be rigid about additional work.
5. Priority: Your manager is not advocating your request, but busy on something else. Prioritizing is the key to managing effectively. Although your request is a high priority to your individual needs, the manager must take into account the department or company as a whole.
6. Too many tasks: Managers have a lot on their plate so if something slips through the cracks, it doesn’t hurt to remind them again. And yes, they do care!
7. Attitude: Since your manager has a high workload, the team members’ attitude toward them matters. The polite and flexible yet professional members are the easiest to work with.

The Boss Challenge

Yes, it is a better paying job with the authoritative power over the team. But that doesn’t make the job a piece of cake. Here are a few things for you to consider:

1. Goals: You have a goal for the objective and task assigned to your team. A manager has bigger goals and facilitates the achievement of the bigger goal. They motivate the team, overcome obstacles, focus and guide the team towards the goal.
2. Employees: Whether you feel it or not, the employees are important to managers. They are responsible for every employee in order to leverage their strengths and complement the weaknesses.
3. Underperformance: It is usually a touchy task, but necessary. Confronting underperformance can get tough, but managers must handle it to avoid affecting the performance of the team as a whole.
4. Outstanding: And those that outperform the team can also become a challenge to handle as they have different expectations of the manager. They may need special attention, separate facilities, recognition, motivation and a clear career growth plan.
5. Hiring: Crucial and vital task of a manager. Finding the right candidate to join the team who can boost the performance is the goal. But if a wrong person is hired, it might drag the team down.
6. Crisis: In times of a crisis, the team looks to the boss to handle it. They must think on their feet, keep calm, resolve the issues and resume work.
7. Improvements: Doing good is okay, but a manager cannot be satisfied with that. Every moment the boss is thinking of how to push the team to do better as individual members as well as a team.

The next time you think your boss is not doing a good job or working hard enough, remember the iceberg that remains under the water. Ironing out the differences between colleagues and bosses is the easiest way to building a productive team. The negativity and gaps between a subordinate and the boss can be sorted out only through effective communications.