Getting a business degree in college really shaped my thinking. I always have a management lens in every situation. I think there are basically two types of bosses.
1. Micro manager- completely hands on, doesn't show trust in employees.
2. Macro manager- more hands off, lets employees have control over their job.
I know these are big generalizations, but I think they fit the overall feel of each type of management.
I'm not going to question what type of boss people enjoy until the next post. For me I need someone who will show me how they want me to do the job (micromanage) the first few days, and then leave me alone and let me do a good job (macromanage).
The question here is what is the most effective type of management? What makes people work harder and work more efficiently?
My answer may surprise you. I'll give that later.
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
The Perfect Boss
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6 comments:
I'm a macro manager style leader because I believe in that style. I'm a licensed nursing home administrator and have predominantly served at psychiatric facilities over the years that range from 150 - 200 staff. When I am not at the facility, my direct reports function just fine because they know how to make decisions independently. But they can always call on me if they need me. When I leave a facility to move on to the next one, everything doesn't fall apart, it continues to flourish. Because it's not all about me; it's about each member of the team building his/her skills and learning to work together toward our goals. I think the micro manager style makes people dependent on their boss and doesn't allow them to grow as professionals.
great point.
thanks.
I just had an expereince this very morning with a micro managing boss, that is driving me crazy. When I lead, I like to let people "own" their spot, and that can look a lot of different ways. But whatever they do much fit into, and help move towards the overall goal. Ahhhhhh (that is a ahhhh of frustration).
Too bad Kyle that your boss doesn't let you have your spot the way you need to so you can be productive.
I always try to remember that there are many ways to get to the same goal.
As long as it's moral and ethical. I try to let the people at my work, and even my sons, do it their way. That's hard sometimes too because of course I think my way is best. But the truth of the matter is that I frequently find they've come up with better ways.
I have yet to meet a person that says they like to be micro-managed. I'm sure they exist, I just haven't personally met them. Everybody wants to feel a)empowered and b)trusted, so the big answer is that macromanagement works best. However...
If there isn't an aspect of micro-management in your style then you simply aren't doing your job as a boss. The boss is there to guide and keep people on track. I think management can simply be defined as getting people to do what you want them to do. So, 90% of the time it's letting them use their God given gifts and abilities to do the work that is necessary, but if a boss/manager/supervisor isn't involved in the process then they aren't being guided properly, and that is poor management.
From my experience many people who claim that they don't micro-manage tend to be the ones that micro-manage. I'm not saying that it is true for everybody, but it is true of most of the people I've worked for that claimed that they don't like to micro-manage. Now whenever someone says that in an interview process I see it as a warning sign.
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