Brigette Hyacinth* lists some of the worst examples of bad leadership that make employees dread coming to work in the morning.
A former manager of mine once told me: “If I am going down, you are going down with me.”
That was in relation to having a bad sales quarter.
From that point on, there was no need to pay attention to her.
It becomes difficult to continue to feel passion for the job once you see a lapse in integrity in your boss.
It only got worse from there, so I knew it was time to start planning my exit strategy.
Bad boss behaviour leads to poor employee engagement and high turnover.
When you have a manager who treats you with respect and has your back, you are more likely to give your best and stay longer.
When you have a bad boss, you’re much more likely to be disengaged, suffer from anxiety and want to leave.
These are the deal breakers.
Micromanaging:
The number one killer of creativity and innovation.
It fosters an environment of distrust as employees feel suffocated and confined.
To some employees it feels like harassment.
If you hired someone for a job, give them room to get it done.
Setting up people to fail:
Focusing more on employee’s weaknesses rather than strengths.
Such bosses keep tabs and use this against employees in their performance appraisals.
They can list all the mistakes an employee makes even if it was discussed and rectified.
They also don’t hire people who are smarter than them, or share their knowledge to preserve their position.
Picking favourites:
They only recommend employees in their ‘inner circle’ for assignments or growth opportunities.
They surround themselves with sycophants.
Additionally, if an employee stands up to them, the victimisation begins.
They are considered a poor team player and treated as an outcast.
Taking the credit for employees’ work:
Bad bosses will do anything to look good, including taking credit for employees’ work or ideas.
Self-promotion is their top priority.
There is nothing more demotivating than working hard to earn something only to have it unfairly taken away.
This causes employee engagement to plummet.
Making false promises:
They keep changing the milestones.
They are seen as untrustworthy and inauthentic, never keeping their word.
Ignoring feedback:
Some bosses don’t listen to subordinates or they only want positive feedback.
They take negative feedback personally and treat those who give it poorly.
So employees learn not to say anything.
Worse is asking for feedback, then ignoring it.
Employees know they are wasting their time and stop giving helpful feedback.
Such leaders operate in a bubble and set themselves up for failure.
Not standing up for employees:
It’s demotivating working for a manager who does not stand up for their team.
If someone makes a mistake they turn into judge, jury and executioner.
It leaves employees feeling like they are on shaky ground.
Overworking employees:
They have unrealistic expectations about what is possible from employees.
They don’t stop to celebrate successes. Their main focus is on the bottom line and they show no empathy.
They don’t care about employees:
If an employee is ill, their main concern is when they will be returning to work.
They don’t want to authorise personal leave or they question the need for sick days.
Losing their cool when things go wrong:
These types of bad bosses have low emotional intelligence and employees know to stay away when they are upset.
They also insult employees or come off as disrespectful with the tone they use.
They rely on fear and intimidation and employees have to walk on eggshells around them.
Displaying incompetence:
They keep offloading their workload and responsibilities on high performers.
They view their position as one of entitlement rather than one of responsibility.
They fail to give clear direction or provide frequent feedback.
A manager’s job is to facilitate a good working environment for his/her employees.
Good bosses are those comfortable and secure in who they are, whilst bad bosses are competing with their subordinates.
Bad bosses create toxic work environments that drain employees emotionally, mentally, and physically.
Good bosses are few and far between, and employees long for such bosses who will support, inspire and help them to grow thus making their work experience a memorable one.
*Brigette Hyacinth founded the MBA Caribbean Organisation that conducts seminars and workshops in leadership, management and education as well as providing motivational speeches. She can be contacted at www.mbacaribbean.org.
This article first appeared on Brigette’s blogsite
