Positive Employee Relations: How to Tell If You’re a Bad Boss

We spend  a lot of our time identifying and fixing bad bosses. Let’s face it, union campaigns don’t typically happen in companies full of effective managers. The biggest problem most “bad bosses” have is that they think they’re good bosses. It’s a paradox. Often people get promoted into management not because they are good supervisors, but instead because of their productivity in other areas. They sometimes succeed in spite of themselves. What these managers lack is self-awareness. So here is a quick 3 question test you can use to figure out if you are a “bad boss” – plus some tips to fix the problem (hint: the problem is you…). 1. Test number one: You constantly feel like you are “out of the loop” and it pisses you off. This is evidence that you are a jerk, and probably shoot the messenger. How to fix it: Look in the mirror. Ask, “how could I be contributing to this behavior?” Often the reason you are kept out of the loop in the first place is your tendency to shoot the messenger (you start running out of messengers after a while…). So if your employees are frustrating you (especially if the same “problem” seems to occur with several different employees) the problem is probably you, not them. 2. Test number two: The blackberry test. The subject of a conversation changes when you walk in the room or employees start looking for their blackberry when you start talking. This is evidence that you don’t give a hoot about what your employees think. How to fix it: Pay close attention to how employees behave around you. You have probably signaled over the years that you are not open to other opinions or that you will just ignore what people say. These behaviors are things you create – and you can’t fix them by just yelling at people. You have to think about what you are doing to cause these behaviors. 3. Test number three: You fire a lot of people. This is evidence that in addition to being a jerk you are either a terrible judge of talent or a terrible leader. Probably both. How to fix it: A strong leader always looks at performance problems as their own performance problem first. In other words, their assumptions about employees is that they generally will do the best job possible given their level of awareness and their level of skill. So a performance problem is (usually) an awareness or skill problem, and both of those are leadership issues and not a problem with the employee. That’s not to say that every employee is perfect or that you should never fire someone – but if you have to do it very often consider that you are probably the problem, not the employees. Are you a bad boss? Don’t worry – you can be salvaged. The first step is caring about whether you are a good or bad boss – if you’ve made it this far you probably do. Try out the three tips suggested above. Ask for feedback – first from a confidant at work, later from the employees who report to you. Take it seriously. If you do these things you may get something other than a lump of coal (that is coal, isn’t it…) next year for boss’ day.