Weekly Poll: What Makes a Manager a Bad Boss?
Sunday April 23, 2006
Bad bosses are a perennially popular topic on this site. I've even run a poll in the past that asked what you would do if you had a bad boss. The majority of readers said they would talk with their boss. I lauded everyone's courage, but your responses also made me think. Here are my thoughts about how to deal with a bad boss. What makes a bad boss, in your opinion?
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Poll: What Makes a Manager a Bad Boss?
Polling Center: See how site readers voted on recent polls.
Poll: What Makes a Manager a Bad Boss?
- The manager provides little direction.
- The manager offers little or no recognition for success and hard work.
- The manager is indecisive and seemingly changes direction at whim.
- The manager micromanages and nit-picks your work.
- The manager belittles and puts down staff.
- Other. Please add your own opinion about what makes a bad boss to "comments" below.
- View Results
Comments
The manager is not qualified for the position, and has less experience than some (all) of his direct reports.
Let me add from my own experience:
Brings up past transgressions months later.
Does not have a clue as to the definition of performance versus behavior.
Can’t deal with intelligent employees who disagree or have their own thoughts/opinions.
Is dishonest.
Overbearing in expectations
Does not communicate expectations or goals.
Ignores people and/or plays favorites with staff - superstar today, black hole the next.
Loves brownnosers and tattletales
Lack of integrity, breaks promises
Complains and does not solve problems
Can’t handle the truth or perceptions about the organization
Uses people without reward or recognition
A bad boss is one who feels he can wait to the last minute to present you with projects and assignments because you always get it done.
A bad boss is one who does not have the courage to deal with a difficult situation despite knowing that it is the right thing to do.
A bad boss is someone (or an organization) who does not know that his staff is his greatest asset. Happy staff = happy customers.
1) Does not know her job description; Not qualified for the position at ALL, and will take the credit although they do nothing but create chaos.
2) Can’t deal with intelligent employees who disagree or have their own thoughts/opinions.
3) Is dishonest/lies.
3) Does not communicate expectations or goals. Generally communicates through others during interviews(with the interviewee present)or in front of other staff members.
5) Lack of integrity, breaks promises
5) Constantly Complains and does not solve problems. Actually CREATES the problems
5) Makes negative comments about the agency/organization
6) Uses people without reward or recognition, but again will take the credit for work done
7) Makes racial comments about staff or interviewees
I can relate this to my present “boss”. She possesses all of these negative traits.
1. Takes credit for good things employees do, but redirects blame when something goes wrong.
2. When something goes wrong, blames people and makes them look bad when they should step back and look at the process to see where it failed.
3. Does not communicate goals, timelines or expectations. Expects employees to read their mind.
4. Uses disciplinary procedures too often and alienates employees. Most of the time, simple positive communication will correct the problem.
5. Plays favorites. Certain employees get away with murder, while others get written up for every little infraction.
1. Discrimination and favoritism.
2. Looks at job performance alone.
3. Unapproachable.
4. Indecisive in goal setting.
5. Always searching for faults and never commending a good job done.
A bad boss is one who when on the phone, makes her statement Loudly, rudely and slams the phone down on you when she is finished without allowing you to explain or defend yourself.
A Bad Boss: Someone who creates chaos and animosities weekly among staff, who exhibits extreme lack of self control consistently when angry, who bullies the employees in every way listed in the books, has a new target constantly (whether current employee or ex-employee) and uses defamation of these people constantly, but is allowed to continue with this unprofessionalism and mismanagement - so continues. Actually that makes HER boss the ‘BAD BOSS’….
A Bad Boss is one who allows (and thus encourages) Bullying in the Workplace!
A bad boss–someone who cannot manage himself, much less a company. Someone who hands you everyone’s jobs plus his because he needs to take a month and half off to vacation. Of course, you will go on doing everyone’s jobs after he finally shows up again and the company degenerates into sheer idiocy once more.
Someone known to his entire staff as a doper and a drunk. Someone who bills the customers for bogus expenses and never collects so he stiffs the staff on pay. Need I continue?
thank god I’m not alone! Introducing my male boss:
“Women are the only mammal that bleeds once a month and survives”
Only wants to hire women if “they are past child-bearing age”
“I want full control of this tender”, “drop everything and work on the tender, I must see it 1st before it’s sent out”, “Too busy to look at the tender, just send it how it is. If we don’t get it it’s your fault”.
“I used to be a white van man and now I’ve got an MBA” Have you? why don’t you try to use it?
sexist, neanderthal, emotionally dead, discusses intimate details discussed between him & his wife, insincere, LIES to high heaven, eternally shifts blame, changes track constantly, needs several years intensive therapy. No wonder our staff losses are sky high.
A bad boss is one who is moe interested in personal power than in getting the job done well. this person does not have a vison for the company other than personal gain and the projects and their results show this attitude. a very successful corp has leadership that is smat and wise and with integrity.
At my previous job, I had a lot of what you’ve already mentioned, plus some others.
1. Bring disciplinary action for things that happened months ago (so you can’t remember the details of the incident, if there even was one.)
2. Be as vauge as possible, so when employees ask about advancement and promotion they can be denied based on their failure to complete an uncommunicated objective.
3. Loves the brownnosers, especially other managers who work just like her: slowly and inneffectively.
4. Ignores employees until they make a mistake, then they pounce.
5. Procrastinates, is generally unreliable (employees like to have more than six hours notice concerning next weeks work schedule. We do not prefer the company over our friends and family.)
6. Uses employees as pawns in power struggles with other managers.
A bad boss is a person that practices NEPOTISM rather than promoting a person on value added to the organization it is on friendship or being a relative. The boss is usually unqualified. I worked a a company for over 38 years in about 15 jobs and can give you examples just send me a note DKluegel@worldnet.att.net Dkluegel@worldnet.att.net
A bad boss/manager:
- takes news that is given to them by a brownnoser, without going back to confirm the truth of the story with the other staff member(s) involved.
- encourages tattletales
- Is fake/dishonest
- speaks down on employees
- Favours some staff over others
- Thinks she is right about everything
- harsh and demeaning tone of voice (no friendliness in the voice whatsoever)
-DOES NOT CARE TO MAKE AN EFFORT TO CREATE A FRIENDLY, PEACEFUL, WORKING ENVIRONMENT FOR STAFF
This boss curses every vulgar word from the time he arrives until leaves, intimidates everyone, loves slamming his office door, only because he has removed everyone elses off the hinges…he’s the worst I’ve ever seem.
One that sets an incompetent employee on a pedestal and covers for that employee when his/her work is wrong.
One that takes credit for all the work done, although the subordinates are the ones that actually did the work.
One that has been placed in a supervisory position, yet cannot make a simple decision.
Someone who puts on a front, acting like they care about your pay increase and position. In actuality, they want to fire your superior, although his performance is very good, just because he does not like his personality. I said, “Give me a pay increase on my merit alone, not because you expect more from my unrealistic work load as it is.
There is a good book out on this subject written by Jerome Alexander, “160 Degrees of Deviation: The Case for the Corporate Cynic.” He details several of his own experiences with bad and horrific bosses. More importantly he gives his theories on how the get into positions of power.
A bad boss is a person who has been given more authority, control, and influence over others than their skills, education, and training would otherwise allow.
A bad boss is absent of the ability to lead by example. He/She cannot or will not accept constructive feedback, ideas, suggestions, recomendations, or solutions other than their own.
A bad boss:
Does not praise for good work
Is more worried about how the department looks to other departments than how this affects staff
Is unable to understand about emotions and feelings: how the way that they deal with someone affects that person
Plays favourites to the detriment of the department, ruining any teamwork there may have been
Uses discipline and not understanding as the first resort
A bad boss is one who is always trying to please those above him/her at the expense of their own team.
A bad boss is one who does not support his team externally, e.g., someone external to the department points the finger at one of the team and the boss agrees with the complainer!
A bad boss shows no passion and provides little to no direction to his employees. It hinders my development and forces me to seek other managers for feedback.
A Bad boss is one who was always ready to listen the employees advice but when its come to implementation part results are totally different that hasn’t been decided earlier…Here there is a saying listen to all but do what ur mind suggest not keeping other thing into consideration.
A bad boss is one who gets annoyed when you ask questions and refers you to the company Intranet every time you ask a question. A bad boss is also one who works in a position that is supposed to be highly ethical but always bad-mouths others behind their backs to her staff. A bad boss is also one who insults her staff members (my boss actually told me she could never see me being a mother, and she was not kidding).
A bad boss is one who limits the organization by preventing innovation because of their inability to comprehend the benefits that technology brings to the workplace. Also, if they didn’t think of the innovative way to improve a process, product, or even working condition, it is not worthwhile and what results is a tirade of reasons why this will not work (including reasons that conflict with the reasons why the old technology, process, etc. makes more sense).
A bad boss cares less about improving an employees performance through training if they happen to need but do not obtain that training themselves.
I have had many superb managers but only a few that I would consider bad. Morale suffers from the effect of a bad boss while it thrives under a great or even a good boss. Understanding that the people under you depend on you for guidance, advice, and direction does not mean you must be a dictator!
I have always worked to improve the understanding of those around me and by helping my peers I help myself.
#10(Cindy)-Do we work for the same company? Ha!
A “bad boss” is one who constantly tries to be your best friend and gets mad when you don’t reciprocate. I will be friendly, professional, and do the girl chatting on occasion but knowing about torrid, adulterous affairs is not my cup of tea! Word of advice: Don’t ever tell your boss you feel uncomfortable knowing so much. I learned the hard way. Now my work is scrutinized on an hourly basis and I’m constantly being reprimanded for things that make no sense even though I’ve been told on numerous occasions by my “bad boss” that she’s not a micro-manager. Give me a break!
What can I say. The above comments pretty much sum up my work place. supervisor: favorites who report on what is said on breaks,put downs,PMD used for retalations,and more.Management said they back their leaders not matter what. Very high turnover of employees. coporate Hr been contacted numerous times by exit interviews,(these were stopped—mmm too many bad interview for the plant?) emloyees called HR, spouses calls, and yet no questions or interviews. Ask questions and you are written up. Well at least the ones who are not on the “Special List.” Group trying to info. together to do something, but we sure are afraid of losing our jobs. Pray for us.They get wind and since we are a state of employment at will, we can be fired with no explanation. We are on a “list” who are watched for everything we do. We just want to do our job, do it well, and enjoy coming to work. Any advice is appreciated.
Thanks Tonja
My boss hates all young women and the men who talk to the young women. She will also do anything she can to prove you wrong and when you find she is incorrect she says she was just joking. Acts very pleasantly around her bosses but when she is alone with you she has the nerve to call the thinnest girl at work fat.
I have been in the work force, for over 30 years, and I can validate every statement referring to bad managers.
Hence, also,stated, by the majority of the company employees observations.
To eliminate, the bad management, it has to come from the higher management direction. If, the problems are ignored and never addressed, by the upper management. The whole concept is moot!!!
All of what has been said, but the bad boss basically has little or integrity, spine, respectability and will marginalize staff (especially when the person[s] show potential to outgrow him/her. The bad boss will go as far as creating situations and blaming staff in that person’s absence to put him/herself in favor with everyone else. The bad boss is desperate and miserable.
A bad boss is everything so far that had been said. My boss told me that I should use products on my face in order to look more polished. She belittles others in order to make herself look good and when she does not meet her goals and gets called on it she places the blame on her staff then makes us go out and do the work needed to try to reach her goals. She is rarley in the office and then says she observes how little you do and cuts your hours. I have only had one other bad boss before and I would take that boss over this one any day. My current boss is in way over her head as a manager but is a suck-up and a brown-noser to her boss. She plays favorites with some staff for a while then turns around and treats them like dirt and other staff members are her pets. One never knows what will set her off next, be it a heater, a pen holder, health problems, etc. Because of the way she deals with things I have no respect for her at all and neither do any of the other staff members.
A bad boss has many traits and I think we have seen them all in these postings.
Bad Managers who decide the success and duration of your employment based on how much of your personal life “the more drama the better” you are willing to share so that she can go and gossip about it to everyone else.
And if you don’t, you will be her worst enemy, and then wait until she is alone in the office, and sabbotage your work and blame it on you.
A bad boss is one that turns the table on you when you disagree or have a solution they did not come up with. Later, they use your solution and make it theirs. They tend to keep employees and managers under them that cannot do the job just because they use them as the office snitch. They give other more qualified employees or managers extra duties because they can do the work and the department seems to be running smoothly so the upper manager still looks good while others are being used. This on-going continued behavior causes animosity and deception and eventully will turn on the upper manager. It’s unfortunate that it takes so long and so many good people leave first.
A bad boss is someone who manipulates every conversation to fit his perception of events or to cover his mistakes. When called on his distorted perception of reality he threatens his employees with their jobs or accuses them of being insubordinate/argumentative.
Changes his employees work performance standards on a day to day basis, as to never allow them to know whether or not work will be considered acceptable. Loyalty, personal behavior, and competence challenged in front of subordinates when work not considered acceptable.
So much more besides what’s listed above…too bad because the job would be enjoyable if it wasn’t for this horrid person.
A bad boss is someone who puts you down at any opportunity and who nit piks.
There is no praise or support for long hours and effort that you put in.
The praise is only given in front of his own boss or a peer so that he looks good. Everything he does is so that he looks good.
He is unclear on his instructions and changes his mind at the last minute making your ideas into his own to present to his own boss.
You ask a question about your work to clarify what is involved but he takes over and even takes the work off you completely to make himself look good.
Even temps comment to you on how they could n’t put up with his style of management.
Surely that is a bad boss?
A bad management is who believes the first story they hear and never investigates to get the full picture or ask the person who is being discredited. Only believes that shining star employee that no one likes or trust.
WOW… sounds like everyone here works for the same person I do.
A bad boss has high turn over, and breaks his promises. Or keeps ‘forgetting’ promises made - as he say.
It’s not just the bad boss. Employees more often than not have bad attitudes that have nothing to do with their boss.
They don’t make themselves indispensable to their employer. They whine, they complain, they wonder why they got canned. They think the company is lucky to have them.
1. Gives no direction or job expectations and then gives a bad review.
2. Sends an employee for classes, puts a title on the employee’s business card,allows the employee to perform in a capacity for over a year and then says during the review “that’s not your job!” and gives more of a bad review.
4. Hires under the pretense of being an assistant to the company, but in reality is a personal assistant to the boss and family!
5. Who uses staff for personal tasks, ie, bill paying, home and auto repairs, returning items to stores WITHOUT a receipt and expects a full refund; then tells the employee they are doing a poor job.
6. Acts like a spoiled child.
Screaming at employees, in front of other employees!!
Lacking the ability to do the job they are asking you to do, then telling you you are not doing it right.
Working for bad bosses causes their high performing and highly intelligent employees to ultimately seek other places of employment.
What happens is the insecure, fearful, and possibly incompetent “bad boss” actually becomes intimidated by any subordinate who sees straight through their “I know what I’m doing” facade. Once this type of boss recognizes how talented, innovative, creative, and proficient the employee is, they go into attack mode, abusing their authority in order to “keep subordinates in their place.” This is their attempt to lower the confidence of the employee and find minute flaws in that person as their sick effort to even convince themselves that they are smarter than their subordinate.
Since this subordinate is a potential threat and most certainly could do the boss’ job with ease and much better, they are put under a microscope, given negative evaluations, and eventually forced to leave the organization because typically the boss’ boss allows it and that’s the unfortunate, sad part about the whole ordeal. Good people cannot work under those kinds of conditions.
Micromanagers and controlling, power abusers should be made to take responsibility for their lack luster management style and either receive proper training on how to be an effective leader or not be allowed to lead.
A bad boss is one that gathers the group that you supervise and talks about you behind your back to those individuals. After the conversation relays informatin to you that u later find out was not exactly what was said. then writes you up and tells you they will be monitoring your supervisor skills, requests that you make suggestins to help yourself then refuses to allow you to follow through on the things that you are requesting. Ignores you when you report that subordinates are insubordinate and refuse to do what they are asked and will not help address the situation after you have repeatley tried and have been unsucessful. After you make a decision if the individual that you supervise doesn’t like your answer they go to the bad boss and they over ride you all the time. Honestly believes that they are not replaceable is never willing to keep up with advances in technology or make changes to provide a better atmosphere for clients or employees. THAT IS A BAD BAD BAD BAD BOSS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
My current experience with my Bad Boss includes all of the characteristics included in these comments as well as her incessant efforts to keep workers at odds with each other. I am wondering could this also be a means of avoiding embezzlement detection?
A bad boss is one that does not acknowledge nor keep up with their responsibility to continue learning!
A BAD BOSS, IS ONE WHO ENTERS A NEW SITUATION WHERE ALL THE PLAYERS ARE MATURE, DEDICATED PROFESSIONALS, WHO HAVE LIVED COOPERATIVELY, PRODUCTIVELY, AND EVEN THRIVED, WITH LITTLE OR NO SUPERVISION,FOR AT LEAST 4 YEARS…AND SPENDS EACH MEETING TAKING THE OPPORTUNITY, TO REDUCE A GREAT MORALE, TO AN ENVIRONMENT THAT IS MORE AKIN TO THAT OF A FUNERAL, BY DRYLY AND REPEATEDLY ESPOUSING HIS PAST GREATNESS/ACCOMPLISHMENTS, AND CHANGING THE SUBJECT TO HIMSELF AND HIS ACCOMPLISHMENTS, IN THE MIDST OF OUR HAVING FUN. IN 2 MONTHS HE HAS SINGLE-HANDEDLY CHANGED AN ENVIRONMENT OF MUTUAL RESPECT,WARMTH, ENTHUSIASM, OPEN COMMUNICATION AND PROFESSIONALISM, TO SOME PATHETIC FORUM FOR HIS OWN SELF AGGRANDISEMENT. WE KNOW, WHO THE BOSS IS. THE BOSS NEEDS TO SPEND SOME TIME GETTING TO KNOW US…OUR WANTS…ACCOMPLISHMENTS…VISION FOR THE PROGRAM…NOT RAM HIS PERSONNA AND WILL DOWN OUR THROATS AT EVERY GATHERING, BECAUSE HE IS INSECURE IN HIS NEW ROLE, AND HAS A CAPTIVE AUDIENCE, TO WHOM HE CAN PROCLAIM HIS SELF-PERCEIVED GREATNESS, IN ORDER TO CONVINCE US, AND HIMSELF OF HIS GREAT VALUE TO US.WE ARE NOT CHILDREN…THIS PLACE DID AMAZING STUFF BEFORE HE CAME ABOARD.HE HAS MADE SOME GOOD CONTRIBUTIONS AT THIS EARLY STAGE…BUT PRESERVING OUR MORALE IS NOT AMOUNG THEM…SO FAR,HE HAS CONVINCED ME ONLY THAT HE IS SIMPLY NOT UP TO IT.MY SAVING GRACE IS THAT MOST OF MY TIME IS SPENT AT ANOTHER SITE.OTHERWISE, I WOULD SWITCH TO A SITE WHERE I FEEL APPRECIATED.
1. Resistant to change.
2. Believes his/her position of authority makes him/her the smartest person in the room.
3. Confrontational communication style.
4. Doesn’t know how to capitalize on the skills of his/her staff.
5. Fear of criticism from superiors.
6. Mental health issues
7. Dishonest about her/his agenda.
8. Dislikes her/his employees.
I finally couldn’t stand it anymore and I quit working for this horrible boss. I wasn’t perfect, either, but generally I’ve always been a good employee and I just couldn’t make this whacko happy. Here’s a summary from this experience:
1. Always takes the other person’s side if you have a disagreement with someone, without getting your side first.
2. Punishes you for not doing something you were never told to do in the first place.
3. Humiliates you in meetings in front of your coworkers and degrades you in private meetings.
4. Tells you to do one thing then a minute later tells you to do the opposite, then later criticizes you for making up your own mind.
5. Tells you to go to her when you have a problem but never solves the problem or even returns the phonecall or e-mail.
6. Doesn’t return e-mails or phone calls
7. Won’t give you data to help you in your job, including goals, targets, or monthly accomplishments… then tells you that you suck.
8. If you raise a question in a meeting you get a slap-down even though it’s something that really needed to be asked.
9. She always has to know your schedule but she never tells you hers, or has her assistants publish it… then bitches you out for calling her when she’s swamped with meetings or something.
10. Sweet as pie one minute and a snapping vicious harpie the next, then a minute later sweet as pie again.
A Bad Boss is one who expects you to take responsibility for a position but does not give you the authority to do so.
My Boss is a Pastor and it’s all about him, not all about the church. Whatever he can do to make himself look good to the point of trying to out do past pastors by listing his accomplishments for everyone to see.
Rewards bad behavior. Doesn’t reward those that get the job done. Lies and hides thngs from everyone on team.
My personal experience with a bad boss:
1. She never recognizes your contributions to the company when you consistently exceed goals and and expectations.
2. She questions all of your whereabouts in the course of the workday. If you should happen to go to the restroom or get a drink of water, she questions other employees as to where you could possibly be.
3. You’re penalized for clocking in one minute late.
4. She criticizes and complains about your work performance in the presence of other employees.
5. She goes off half-cocked making false accusations about your work performance without looking at the weekly reports that records employee productivity.
6. She uses the staff meetings to promote herself in the presence of her own boss while shifting blame for any mishaps to staff members.
7. In the staff meetings when her boss is not present, she takes the opportunity to going to a hour long tirade where she speaks in a condescending tone to her staff but never fails to mention her everlasting perfection.
8. She plays favorites by promoting employees who suck up and are not the most qualified. She allows allows these same employees to work overtime while others are denied the opportunity to do so.
9. She entertains gossips and hearsay from her henchmen as the gospel truth.
10. She is unable to effectively communicate department tasks and basic job-related skills without the help of her boss or her henchmen.
11. She demands status reports that records our workday down to the minute but doesn’t even bother to read them because it’s more work than she can handle.
12. She invades your space by looking through your desk in your absence. In fact, the only time that she goes into your cubicle is when you’re not around.
13. She’s dishonest.
A bad boss who does not train well or share knowledge and then berates you for not having the knowledge.
Another example is one who gives cash awards to employees because they know they need money and they feel sorry for them.
A boss that micromanages your every move. I had a boss who actually asked an employee why she had to pee so often (the woman took diurectics) and then went so far as to go into the bathroom and peek under the stall doors to see who was in there. I caught her doing that once.
Incapable of giving praise for some success without immediatly adding how poorly you are doing in another area.