Micromanaging Managers - Impact on Performance
Rocket
Singh (Not the real name) has a profitable business. He hired a highly successful sales manager
with a fat salary. Naturally, he wanted a big jump in sales. But in last 6
months sales has dropped. Rocket Singh worked closely with the manager and he
appeared to follow his decisions! He is now seriously thinking if he had chosen the right candidate or not. Should the manager be relieved or some better alternative is available? That's when Rocket called me and I got involved.
So what went wrong? Was it a hiring mistake? I didn't feel so as I had a few interactions with the Sales Manager in the past few months and he appeared to possess the skills to lead the team effectively as well as focus on the right tasks! Rocket confided how deeply he had engaged himself with the manager, explaining all the nitty-gritty of the sales and marketing activities on a weekly basis or even more frequently at times! He had to, as he felt that the Manager being new to the organisation, may not be aware of the processes and work culture. However, he was feeling that his Manager was not doing enough, as he was not taking decisions himself and waited for instructions instead. This had cost him several big opportunities too.
After hearing out Rocket, I spoke to the Sales Manager separately. He sat through the discussion and barely responded to my questions. His body language told me that he was just going through the motions and was not really excited about the possibilities ahead. This time I felt he was only trying to comply. I knew instantly that he couldn't do any better till he changed his attitude. But to do that I had to get to the root of the problem! And the root was Rocket. He was micromanaging and interfering too much.
Rocket had erred in his approach of leading the Manager. He was used to working with sales executives and engaging with them. He continued the same habit with the Manager who didn't need to be spoon fed. Rocket's behaviour demonstrated that he had little faith in the Manager's abilities. The Manager gradually lost his enthusiasm and motivation of proving his mettle. He realized that he had to comply well to satisfy the boss and retain his job!
I took up the matter immediately with Rocket and advised him a way forward to delegate properly without losing sight of organisation performance. It also ensured that he didn't seem to be interfering too much. A software system called Karma Axis did the trick and the business was back on track quickly!
So what went wrong? Was it a hiring mistake? I didn't feel so as I had a few interactions with the Sales Manager in the past few months and he appeared to possess the skills to lead the team effectively as well as focus on the right tasks! Rocket confided how deeply he had engaged himself with the manager, explaining all the nitty-gritty of the sales and marketing activities on a weekly basis or even more frequently at times! He had to, as he felt that the Manager being new to the organisation, may not be aware of the processes and work culture. However, he was feeling that his Manager was not doing enough, as he was not taking decisions himself and waited for instructions instead. This had cost him several big opportunities too.
After hearing out Rocket, I spoke to the Sales Manager separately. He sat through the discussion and barely responded to my questions. His body language told me that he was just going through the motions and was not really excited about the possibilities ahead. This time I felt he was only trying to comply. I knew instantly that he couldn't do any better till he changed his attitude. But to do that I had to get to the root of the problem! And the root was Rocket. He was micromanaging and interfering too much.
Rocket had erred in his approach of leading the Manager. He was used to working with sales executives and engaging with them. He continued the same habit with the Manager who didn't need to be spoon fed. Rocket's behaviour demonstrated that he had little faith in the Manager's abilities. The Manager gradually lost his enthusiasm and motivation of proving his mettle. He realized that he had to comply well to satisfy the boss and retain his job!
I took up the matter immediately with Rocket and advised him a way forward to delegate properly without losing sight of organisation performance. It also ensured that he didn't seem to be interfering too much. A software system called Karma Axis did the trick and the business was back on track quickly!
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