Managing Leadership^®

Stories about micromanaging bosses we’ve had can be great fun to swap – after they’re over. While you’re enduring such a boss, being swept up in his or her self-destructive behavior may be one of the most agonizing experiences you’ll have at work. It can also be agonizingly difficult to resolve.

The instinct to micromanage can come from one of two sources. The first is simply bad habits developed in front line employment as a line worker or supervisor, where personal control of everything that’s happening in the work unit often really is necessary and expected. When such a person is promoted, they can mistakenly believe that the promotion is for the degree of control they’ve exercised, and assume that what they think got them promoted is what their bosses want more of. Micromanagers like these can usually be taught in a tactful way how and why to migrate out of such an attitude.

The other source is actually a personality type that approaches (although usually not to a clinical level) what is called obsessive-compulsive personality disorder (this is not OCD, which is a potentially debilitating anxiety disorder). People who have this are the type who put off taking a vacation until their family (or their boss) is ready to revolt, then they carefully plan out and structure every minute of it.

These bosses stay at work day and night and weekends, they insist that everything meet their stringent standards, keep finding reasons why it doesn’t, and keep sending it back. Of course, as a result, work never really gets done, decisions never get made, and not only does your work get backed up behind this bottleneck, but often the organization‘s work does, too, as issues enter your unit from other parts of the organization and your manager keeps them from ever leaving – they check in, but never check out.

Unfortunately, people in this category often become the people who thrive in the front-line jobs that require strict control. They then get promoted for their work, and insist in believing that their perfectionism and iron control is what endears them to their own bosses. As a result, it is hard to differentiate them from those that simply developed bad habits that can be rectified, or misinterpreted the reasons for their promotions, which can be remedied.

Here’s what to do: First, make sure you really have a micromanaging boss. How do you tell? If your peers who are also managed by him or her aren’t being micromanaged, well, then the problem may not be your boss.

But if it is, try this: You (or you and all of your micromanaged peers) take your manager out for lunch or coffee to celebrate the manager’s arrival/first month/or whatever other appropriate excuse you can drum up. As part of the agenda you can tell stories about the unit and its past and present employees and the like; you might also include a few stories about how past managers have learned their jobs at this unit.

At some point, though, you welcome the manager in a more serious vein to the unit, and describe to him or her how you all enjoy working there and have always taken pride in helping its managers succeed. Explain that it is a tradition in this unit for the employees to solve problems for the manager and to take tasks and difficulties off of his or her shoulders.

Use some examples of the manager’s own micromanagement (without characterizing it that way, of course!) since arrival to show how you might have been able to do the same for him or her. Be as specific as you think you can get away with, and explain how this approach benefits the ability of the team to achieve efficiency in its work, as well as the ability of the manager to maintain liaison, support, and oversight duties.

If the manager listens with attention, camaraderie, and appreciation, asks questions about each of you, your work, and how the unit operates and your observations about that as well, then you’ve begun the process. If he or she says that that’s all very well and good, but then starts talking about his or her strict rules and uncompromising standards, and how seriously he or she takes responsibilities and won’t let them slip, and the like, then there’s nothing for it but to hunker down and lean into the wind – because it will never stop – or just make a break for it and run for the hills.

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