As a middle manager with a hybrid staff… it could be both. I’m basically trusting my team to get their shit done without me checking over their virtual shoulders, but is that the best way? No idea. I’m just flying by the seat of my pants. My team has very high engagement levels, so I think my approach is working; but I also have a very experienced team and don’t think my approach would be successful for managing fresh-outs virtually.
I imagine it is a one bad apple ruins the bunch scenario. So long as everyone it’s working then it’s good, but as soon as you eventually get a bad employee trying too get away with doing nothing it will kill morale if not addressed immediately
I’d also expect that one way to buy time is to acknowledge achievements. People like being acknowledged and it won’t stop demoralization from the lazy but it will make it so people understand that you at least see the difference between the two types. Industrial society alienates us from our labor. Few jobs allow us to bask in the pride in what we’ve done at the end of it, so it’s important to acknowledge that it is being done
yeah it could be both but I would counter that without the other things no level of management will increase employee engagement, and manager while part of the engagement formula they are not the largest and can’t be effective in this area until the other layers are met. Call it a corporate Maslow’s hierarchy of needs where managers are near the top with like ping pong and pizza parties at the top.
I sort if see it the same those that complain about how employee loyalty no longer exists but have no problems laying off half their staff before they ask the CEO to take a pay cut, or barely keep pace with inflation for their highest performers.
I was recently asked to mentor someone on another team, but being as though i haven’t had a raise in over 2 yrs and coworkers I relied on are laid off I declined that ‘opportunity’. I would mentor another teammate because it helps me individually, but ill be damned if i stick my neck out for the company who is making record profits quietly shedding good talent and hiring new cheaper replacements.
In my case, I was fully remote for 2 years of COVID and have been hybrid ever since. We started at three days in when we returned to work and are now down to one day in a week.
If anything, my team has gotten more productive, not less.
Do I feel disengaged sometimes? Sure, but my employer treats me like gold and I have all the freedom I need as long as I do good work, respond quickly when needed, and honor my deadlines.
Every person is “useless” when things go well or everyone else can fill in (which is most of the time). The point of a manager is handling the snags and keeping it out of others’ hair so they can focus on their tasks.
You only appreciate it when you actually know what good management looks like. It sucks how rare it is, though, I’ll give you that. About as rare as having parents that know how to parent and instruct without the authoritative cliches. (or hopefully that situation has improved by now but I dunno…)
I’m a solid manager. I started my current job about 5 months ago. I don’t think the staff I inherited had ever worked under anyone halfway decent. Three months in I was still reassuring my team that I wasn’t trying to replace them, I was only hiring people because we were grossly understaffed. Two months later we’re fully staffed, no one has been fired, and they finally trust me.
It’s fucking tragic how poorly most managers do their jobs.
Yeah, you don’t value management until you work a job that requires a lot of cooperation and management isn’t managing enough.
Good management holds your coworkers accountable so their fuck ups don’t become your problem. Good management coordinates efforts. Good management sets goals and expectations so you aren’t wasting half your time on something that only kinda matters until you need the important thing that takes a month immediately. Good management understands the workers and can emphasize their strengths to the task at hand and cover their weaknesses. Good management sends ideas up the chain when needed and can remove obstacles from your path.
And when you’re doing a multi year project that involves several departments, insufficient management is frustrating as fuck.
It’s good and fine for labor and management to conflict. But there’s a reason worker owned coops hire managers.
As a middle manager with a hybrid staff… it could be both. I’m basically trusting my team to get their shit done without me checking over their virtual shoulders, but is that the best way? No idea. I’m just flying by the seat of my pants. My team has very high engagement levels, so I think my approach is working; but I also have a very experienced team and don’t think my approach would be successful for managing fresh-outs virtually.
I imagine it is a one bad apple ruins the bunch scenario. So long as everyone it’s working then it’s good, but as soon as you eventually get a bad employee trying too get away with doing nothing it will kill morale if not addressed immediately
I’d also expect that one way to buy time is to acknowledge achievements. People like being acknowledged and it won’t stop demoralization from the lazy but it will make it so people understand that you at least see the difference between the two types. Industrial society alienates us from our labor. Few jobs allow us to bask in the pride in what we’ve done at the end of it, so it’s important to acknowledge that it is being done
yeah it could be both but I would counter that without the other things no level of management will increase employee engagement, and manager while part of the engagement formula they are not the largest and can’t be effective in this area until the other layers are met. Call it a corporate Maslow’s hierarchy of needs where managers are near the top with like ping pong and pizza parties at the top.
I sort if see it the same those that complain about how employee loyalty no longer exists but have no problems laying off half their staff before they ask the CEO to take a pay cut, or barely keep pace with inflation for their highest performers.
You have to build a training plan for fresh. Measure at the macro, not micro.
Did the important things get done over the year? Great.
Coach for impact, end to end problem ownership, initiative, efficient communication, follow and follow through.
Delegate mentoring to those who you see as good examples. Credit the mentors for excellence in mentoring. Credit the rookies for improvement.
Micromanaging is not a scalable or effective approach
I was recently asked to mentor someone on another team, but being as though i haven’t had a raise in over 2 yrs and coworkers I relied on are laid off I declined that ‘opportunity’. I would mentor another teammate because it helps me individually, but ill be damned if i stick my neck out for the company who is making record profits quietly shedding good talent and hiring new cheaper replacements.
In my case, I was fully remote for 2 years of COVID and have been hybrid ever since. We started at three days in when we returned to work and are now down to one day in a week.
If anything, my team has gotten more productive, not less.
Do I feel disengaged sometimes? Sure, but my employer treats me like gold and I have all the freedom I need as long as I do good work, respond quickly when needed, and honor my deadlines.
Can’t complain about that.
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Every person is “useless” when things go well or everyone else can fill in (which is most of the time). The point of a manager is handling the snags and keeping it out of others’ hair so they can focus on their tasks.
You only appreciate it when you actually know what good management looks like. It sucks how rare it is, though, I’ll give you that. About as rare as having parents that know how to parent and instruct without the authoritative cliches. (or hopefully that situation has improved by now but I dunno…)
Lemmy is full of kids for whom “management” means the asshole they worked under at McDonalds.
Solid managers shield their people from the bullshit and help them move forward and up.
I’m a solid manager. I started my current job about 5 months ago. I don’t think the staff I inherited had ever worked under anyone halfway decent. Three months in I was still reassuring my team that I wasn’t trying to replace them, I was only hiring people because we were grossly understaffed. Two months later we’re fully staffed, no one has been fired, and they finally trust me.
It’s fucking tragic how poorly most managers do their jobs.
Yeah, you don’t value management until you work a job that requires a lot of cooperation and management isn’t managing enough.
Good management holds your coworkers accountable so their fuck ups don’t become your problem. Good management coordinates efforts. Good management sets goals and expectations so you aren’t wasting half your time on something that only kinda matters until you need the important thing that takes a month immediately. Good management understands the workers and can emphasize their strengths to the task at hand and cover their weaknesses. Good management sends ideas up the chain when needed and can remove obstacles from your path.
And when you’re doing a multi year project that involves several departments, insufficient management is frustrating as fuck.
It’s good and fine for labor and management to conflict. But there’s a reason worker owned coops hire managers.