Since the COVID-19 pandemic, remote work has become more common. To employees, they see this as progress in the workplace since it improves work-life balance, establishes better boundaries, and overall helps with productivity. However, remote managers see this as a challenge. In fact, remote managers find it difficult to supervise employees and prevent time theft because of this setup. As a result, remote managers have trust issues towards their employees because they cannot monitor activities that they cannot see; hence, they resort to micromanagement.
What is Micromanagement?
According to a study, micromanagement is when managers excessively control their employees, put them under close scrutiny, and frequently intervene in their tasks, responsibilities, and decisions. One employee described working for a micromanager as making “you feel like a 5-year-old.” Micromanagement manifests in highly detailed instructions, centralized decision-making, resistance to innovation and flexibility, obsessive attention to detail, reluctance to delegate authority and tasks, preference for authoritarian leadership, and inability to trust subordinates. At one point, micromanagers exert excessive control by setting unrealistic expectations and imposing unmanageable workloads systematically and persistently.
Why Do Micromanagers Exist
There are various reasons why micromanagers exist, but it is often due to personal characteristics, organizational culture, and situational factors. Specifically, some managers have a need for control and perfectionism, while others lack trust towards their subordinates. The COVID-19 pandemic also exacerbated the rise of micromanagers to make up for the lack of physical monitoring of employees.
Some literature also points out that micromanagement has its advantages and is not as bad as it seems. Micromanagement can provide the necessary structure and clarity, especially for employees who need guidance or are less experienced, thus improving focus and productivity. In a way, micromanagers are seen as supporters of skill development and confidence-building for novice employees.
The Realities of Micromanagement & Why It’s Bad
However, the reality of how micromanagers can be detrimental to employees remains. A study found that micromanagers affect the employees’ emotional engagement. Because of micromanagers, employees feel less attached to the company and have a weak sense of belongingness, thus affecting their behavioral engagement. The participants in the study state that they did not exert effort beyond work expectations since managers have the final say on their deliverables. The low level of autonomy resulted in apathetic attitudes toward work.
Micromanagers also undermine autonomy. Employees like to be trusted as adults and have a degree of independent decision-making; having that taken away from them affects job satisfaction. Furthermore, micromanagement stifles creativity, dampens motivation, and reduces productivity.
Micromanagement can also be harmful to the managers themselves. By being excessively controlling over everything, managers put themselves in a vicious cycle of time-draining operational tasks. This results in a lack of innovation for the team and, eventually, managers burn themselves out and compromise their leadership skills.
For Leaders: Delegate Tasks & Responsibilities
While micromanagement can be advantageous, it is important to mitigate it to avoid its negative effects on employees. This means addressing organizational issues, promoting a culture of trust amongst employees and managers, and empowerment at all levels. Specifically, roles and responsibilities must be clearly defined, as well as the goals that they are expected to achieve. Similarly, managers must learn not to set unrealistic expectations and standards that are too high for anyone to achieve. Furthermore, open communication and feedback must be implemented in the workplace to encourage mutual understanding, collaboration, and trust. Lastly, it is important to have a team that has your back. It is crucial to have a team that has the experience, skills, and training to make sure that all objectives are met. By having employees who are capable, leaders can focus on innovation and less on being micromanagers.