Kevin Spacey, Unmanageable Boss
Often, when Anne or I tell someone that we’ve published a book called Managing the Unmanageable, the response is, “I hope you’re going to write a sequel called Managing the Unmanageable Boss!“
Not surprisingly, The Economist magazine (or whoever wrote their review of New Line Cinema’s “Horrible Bosses”) is not impressed with the specter of Unmanageable Bosses (let’s call them UBs) that this movie raised.
Perhaps the film stinks (I haven’t seen it), but that’s no reason to conclude, as this reviewer did, that “All this fuss suggests, not that bosses are growing more horrible, but that employees expect them to be more agreeable.” After all, he continues, “Laws ban discrimination, the internet allows people to air their complaints and the prevailing management culture emphasizes sensitivity.”
So everything’s OK, right?
Uh, not quite. While today’s bosses may not take an axe to your desk or lock you into a death-trap factory, Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire style, they are still perfectly capable of taking an axe to your career or sending you into a death-trap mine, Upper Big Branch Mine explosion style.
Most employees who quit their jobs cite bad bosses as the #1 reason. Horrible, or at least incompetent, managers are a fact of life, just as unmanageable employees are. (A friend of ours whose father ranks high in the State Department says that bad supervision is also the #1 complaint of military personnel returning from Afghanistan!)
What’s an Employee (or a Boss) To Do?
We vote for reinforcing the positive.
If you have a good boss, let them know, specifically, what you appreciate about their management style. We discuss acknowledgements elsewhere on this site (and, of course, in MTU!), but here are some samples of what we mean:
- “It helped me that you were very specific about exactly what you wanted my report to cover.”
- “Thanks for listening so attentively to what I said at the meeting.”
- “Jason seems much more energized since you mentioned his work so positively to the team.”
And bosses, don’t forget to do your part!
Catch your employees — UEs and non-UEs alike — doing something right, and acknowledging their efforts, as well.
Whether your “unmanageable” is a UB or a UE, acknowledging what’s best in their performance will help them move in a positive direction that benefits you, them, and your entire organization!
