Worker Asks For Advice After His Underperforming Boss Keeps Calling Weekly Micromanaging Meetings
He saw other red flags waving, as well.
fizkes | Shutterstock A good workplace functions like a well-oiled machine, in that every employee understands their role and shows up as their best self for the tasks at hand. Even when there are setbacks or glitches, people know how to communicate with one another to keep things running smoothly.
A workplace that falls on the more toxic side of the spectrum; however, likely displays certain red flags that employees should pay attention to, like micromanagement. One worker can wrap his head around the weekly meetings his micromanaging boss requires him to attend even though the major issue is that his boss is unproductive.
A worker asked for advice after an underperforming director kept calling him into weekly micromanaging meetings.
In a since-deleted Reddit post, he explained that he works for a small company with no more than 10 employees.
He called out one woman in particular, saying that she has “The title of ‘director’ but isn’t even my direct boss.” Still, she organized one-on-ones with him to go over his work tasks every week.
“At first it seemed friendly but I now realize it’s just so she can gauge my timesheet to point out where she feels I am wasting company time,” the worker said.
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He believes the meetings “have zero point and zero resolution," and are merely "her way of digging out information she can report to our actual boss to justify her role in the company.”
He shared that as a senior-level employee with a longer tenure at the company than the director, there’s “no reason” he should be managed by her, especially because they have the same boss.
The employee also mentioned that the company “isn’t exactly doing great at the moment” and the director was brought in to acquire new leads, only she failed to actually do so.
“Her salary is probably on the higher end of the company, too, so I suspect she’s under some sort of pressure to get results,” he noted.
The worker wondered how to handle his colleague's micromanaging without jeopardizing his own job.
As one HR coach, Amy Lentz, shared, most bosses who micromanage do so from a place of insecurity.
“They’re probably insecure as a leader and they need control in smaller ways, like micromanaging you, to help them feel like they are in control, and not not showing up in the ways they want to,” she explained.
The first technique she suggested for approaching a micromanaging boss was to practice empathy.
“This isn’t about you, this is about them,” she said. “It’s personally impacting you, but it’s not personal to you.”
Lentz also reminded people struggling at their jobs that work is transactional, saying, “You can help yourself in moments when you might feel like you’re being underutilized or undervalued or underappreciated.”
Her advice for dealing with a micromanager was to speak to them in “an emotionally neutral way.” She outlined a script for exactly what to say, starting with bringing up a “very specific example of when they were recently micromanaging you.”
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She advised saying, “I’m hoping you can understand where I’m coming from, I really want to understand where you’re coming from, and then we can figure out a way where we can better work together moving forward.”
She also suggested framing your constructive critique in terms of intention versus impact by saying, “I know your intention might be X, but the impact it has on me is Y.”
“You also want to propose a solution, and acknowledge where they’re coming from,” Amy said, noting that because micromanaging is about control, people shouldn’t expect it to ramp down to zero immediately.
As for the employee being micromanaged by his director, it appeared like she was using their weekly meetings to safeguard her own position while preparing a case against him. The employee recognized that, and was also able to acknowledge the other red flags at the company that led him to look for work elsewhere.
Work might not be anyone’s favorite place to spend time, but we all deserve a functional workplace where we’re treated with respect. When the employee on Reddit realized that his company was no longer serving him, he took the right steps forward to find a new environment — hopefully one where his colleagues trust his work.
Alexandra Blogier is a writer on YourTango's news and entertainment team. She covers social issues, pop culture analysis and all things to do with the entertainment industry.