The 10 red flags that a good worker will be a bad boss
July 25, 2008 by Jim GiulianoPosted in: Behavior, Communication, Hiring, Managers, Special Report, Training
When someone gets promoted into management and turns out to be a nightmare, HR often asks, “Why didn’t we see this coming?” All the signs probably were there, but maybe no one was looking for them.
People who fail as bosses - or at least make their employees miserable - tend to share 10 weaknesses. If you can spot them in managerial candidates, you might be able to save yourself and others a lot of aggravation by keeping the problem people out of management or guiding them to work on their skills.
Here are the common weaknesses spotted by Jackie Harder, a training consultant in Florida:
- People who’ll make bad managers tend to shun learning and training. Some will do so because they just don’t like learning new things; others think they know it all already.
- They’re not excited about their work. Oh, they’ll do it on a competent level, but you know they’re not passionate about it.
- They avoid unpleasant situations and people. It’s easier to go around unpleasantness, so they never learn to deal with it - and that it’s not the end of the world.
- They avoid risk - all risk - for fear of making a mistake or being criticized. What they don’t understand is that everyone makes mistakes and everyone gets criticized.
- Standing by your ideas is a good trait. Never changing your mind is a bad one. Does the candidate you’re talking to refuse to be swayed by even the strongest facts?
- Similarly, they refuse to admit they’re wrong - but of course believe everyone else is.
- When things do go wrong (often because of their own blunders), they can’t let it go and move on.
- They don’t have a clear picture of their strengths and weaknesses.
- They prefer to work alone, often forgetting that management, first and foremost, is about dealing with people. Managers need to be able to talk to other people, listen to their input, make them part of your organization, get their best effort and push them to succeed. And that’s just the beginning, as you know.
- They prefer to stay in the background when working in groups or teams. Don’t expect someone like that to change his or her spots when they get a management position.
Tags: candidates, management
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July 28th, 2008 at 12:07 pm
This just happened at my company. I tried to tell them someone wasn’t ready for the management position but they went ahead with it anyway. This morning everything came crashing down.
July 28th, 2008 at 12:25 pm
How about adding these two to your list:
They manage and control by intimidation, criticism and bullying, not by encouragement or constructive suggestions.
They micromanage by questioning and scrutinizing every little thing.
July 28th, 2008 at 12:43 pm
I have seen this more often than not. Usually, those who are your top producers are promoted to management. While they may be great in their current job does not mean they will continue to be great. I try to determine who would be a great manager by talking to others who work with the top producers to get an understanding of how this person gets the job done. Usually I receive feedback that the top producer is hateful, rude, and always talks bad about the people who work with them. Of course, not everybody likes the top producers as they tend to be managements “pets”. So you really have to read between the lines. I also ask the top producers to help others who are having difficulties and see how they handle the training aspect. I also ask the “manager candidate” to work in another dept. to see how they handle learning something new. I then talk to the people in that dept. to see how this person would fit in. The last thing I do is get the “manager candidate” involved in some “mock” disciplinary actions (they do not know it is not real) to see how they handle the situation. This has worked very well for me and my company. Of course I am not always right but I am more right than wrong.
July 28th, 2008 at 12:46 pm
What can one do to help an employee already in the position become a better leader?
July 28th, 2008 at 12:56 pm
Great article! Would it be OK to include the article with my monthy newsletter (with proper credit given to you)?
Also, please note slight word omission of the work “see”
Lind Trignano
July 28th, 2008 at 4:58 pm
Insisting that they take management courses is good start. There are programs for first time managers that I have found helpful in these cases. Also assigning a mentor or partnering the new manager with a seasoned manager. It is very important to provide constructive criticism, especially immediately following a situation in which he/she made the wrong decision.
Finally, when all else fail, you may have to make the tough decision to demote.