There's No Such Thing as a Bad Boss
© Ronald J. Rakowski, SPHR, CELS
Impossible, you say? Well it all depends upon one's definition of bad. My definition of a "bad" boss is a boss or supervisior from whom one learns nothing. Many, or maybe most, bosses have flaws that, from time to time, trouble and perplex subordinates. People with supervision or management in their future should take advantage of the learning experiences offered by flawed bosses; remember the negative lessons they taught; and concentrate on avoiding those same flaws.
Here are some of the lessons I learned from a few bosses.
FROM A "DRUNK," I LEARNED THE IMPORTANCE OF SOBRIETY.
Every one in my department would avoid scheduling an afternoon meeting because our manager spent a minimum of two hours each noon perched on a bar stool in a nearby saloon. If, for some reason or other, we were compelled to schedule a p.m. meeting, it usually resulted in a disaster because our manager insisted on being included in departmental meetings, regardless of his state of inebriation. Our tipsy manager would interrupt our discussions with inane comments and observations that embarrassed us and threw us all of us off track. It was even more embarrassing when someone from outside the department participated in the meetings. Fortunately, senior management soon recognized the problem and sent the manager away for a cure. Unfortunately, he fell off the wagon soon after returning to work and was sent packing. A lesson I never forgot!
FROM A "MICROMANAGER," I LEARNED TO GIVE SUBORDINATES FREEDOM TO ACT.
This micromanager was actually my manager's boss. When our manager was out of the office, his boss would step in and supervise our work. Well, this particular boss never thought that anyone's first effort was good enough. He'd cut our work apart, demand extensive changes, and send us back to redo whatever we presented to him. He'd usually repeat the process two or three times before allowing the work to be released. He was a true micromanager.
Fortunately, our manager wasn't away from the office much and we were usually able to avoid passing anything by his boss during the manager's infrequent and typically short absences. On one occasion, however, the manager was notified that he was being sent out of the country on a two-week assignment and he deputized me to prepare and distribute a new and rather extensive personnel procedure to the organization's 250 locations. Knowing what was store for me if I had to pass the procedure by my manager's boss for approval, I tried unsuccessfully to extend the release date. Although sympathetic, the manager said a delay was impossible and that I'd just have to work with his boss in order to get the procedure released on time. Before leaving, all he could offer was, "good luck."
