Incompetent Manager - Strategies you can try as an employee
Do you work for a bad manager and feel like you have no options to improve the situation? At some point we have, or will, ask ourselves this question. The reality is, there are a various routes you can take when dealing with a bad manager.
First let’s start off by defining what a “bad manager” is with what is a bad boss?
Employees often find situations with ineffective managers the most difficult to deal with because they aren’t technically violating any workplace policies that would result in disciplinary action against them. So, here are some solutions:
Open-Door Policy. Most companies around the world have an open-door policy and the first step to dealing with a bad manager should be to invoke your right to this policy. This allows you to have an open discussion with your manager about some of the issues you have been having with them. The reality is many managers are receptive to this feedback and are willing to adjust, but they can only do so if they know what to adjust. If you are uncomfortable having this conversation alone, you can always ask Human Resources or another member of management to sit in on the conversation.
Documentation of Incidents. Ideally, you want to start this process after attempting an open-door discussion with your manager. If you feel the discussion did not result in any improvements, then you should start documenting every negative incident between you and your manager. The documentation should include things such as dates, times, witnesses, what was said, and any additional details that adds context to your documentation. The documentation piece of this is critical because, depending on how far this escalates, a more senior manager or Human Resources may be reviewing your documentation during an investigation. Therefore, you need to be as detailed, thorough, and accurate as possible.
E-mail. This is where things get interesting. Depending on what country you are in your employer is most likely bound to “data retention” laws meaning emails must be retained for a specific number of years by the company in accordance with the law. Because of this, employers are often terrified of e-mail documentation because it can be used against them in lawsuits. So, e-mail often gets great attention and creates an additional escalation path for you to use when dealing with a bad manager. If you feel this is necessary you should email any documentation of incidents to your employer’s Human Resources department, and Legal department if possible. Taking this route will nearly guarantee that there will be some form of intervention from Human Resources and a sense of urgency for them to find a resolution.
Skip-Level. This escalation path is a common one and often involves providing feedback of some of your concerns to your manager’s manager. Though common, this often has a 50/50 chance of success. The reason for the low chances of success is because if your manager is producing high-level results their manager is less likely to intervene in their style of management. The chance of this succeeding is even lower if you are in Sales or Marketing.
Disclaimer: The advice provided on this website is for informational purposes only and should not be considered legal advice. We do not take any responsibility for actions taken as a result of the information provided here and recommend seeking professional legal advice tailored to your situation.
