5 Bad Manager Traits Employees Hate Most

What Are The Bad Manager Traits Employees Hate Most?
For decades, we have been asking employees to list the bad manager traits employees hate most.  With over two decades in the trenches helping new managers learn what good management entails and observing leadership best practices, we have some proven tips to pass along.

Invest In Management Development
Our first recommendation is to ensure your new managers are set up to succeed by providing the new manager training you need to build the skills of new leaders. Even though most new managers have excelled as an individual contributor, the role of a new supervisor requires a whole new skill set. Learn what you need to know and then follow these tips that are helpful for even the not-so-new managers.

Five Bad Manager Traits Employees Hate Most
New leaders need to stop doing what doesn’t work.

1. Stop Holding On To Workers Who Don’t Support The Team
   New managers are especially loathe to let team members go. It certainly shouldn’t be done precipitously—it takes time to evaluate the individuals on your team—but poor workers, either because of inability or serious incompatibility, can undermine team performance.

   If you have an employee who is performing below standard, you need to find out why. Do they need more training or an assignment that better utilizes their strengths? If there’s no improvement, compassionately find another spot for them.

   If you have an employee who disrespects others or who is not a cultural fit, don’t hang on to them. Show that what you value most is a positive, collaborative, and aligned environment.

2. Stop Emphasizing Strategy Over Mission
   Yes, you do need a cohesive plan that guides the decisions of your team and sets out the clear action steps to achieve your objectives. But understand that strategy on its own does not motivate your employees. Instead, employees are inspired to work harder and better when they have a meaningful sense of mission.

   When employees understand that their work has purpose and contributes to the organization’s overall goals, they can more fully commit to the strategy. Mission helps to drive employee engagement, not the other way around.

3. Stop Using Money As Your Only Motivator
   Money as a primary motivator, especially for tasks that depend on creative, innovative thinking, is simply ineffective. Instead give your employees opportunities – to learn and grow, to tackle new challenges, and to operate with more autonomy. Additionally, superior work and discretionary effort should be recognized and rewarded – not just (or at all) by dollars but by public thank you’s and salutes.
4. Stop Avoiding Difficult Decisions
   As a new manager, you must make all kinds of decisions – often with limited time and information. A few are easy; most are tough. But you can’t wait to gather in all the information you’d like to have to rule out uncertainty.

   Life in the business world moves too fast for the luxury of risk-free decision-making. You will make mistakes but, usually, inaction is more risky than action. You can always shift course along the way.

   Meantime, take responsibility for your decisions, deal with the consequences, clean up any messes that occur, and learn.

5. Stop Triangulating 
   Triangulating is the practice of speaking about someone else – their personal issues, problems, challenges – when they are not present with a colleague or peer.  The most effective managers are loyal to the absent.  When issues arise, they go directly to the source and have transparent conversations to built respect, focus energy, reduce conflict, and clarify accountability.

The Bottom Line
As a new manager there are certain things you need to “stop” doing related to the bad manager traits employees hate most. But what you must “keep on” doing is learning and creating the environment for your team to succeed. That’s the most important thing you do as a manager.

To be set up to succeed as a new manager, Download This Research-Backed New Manager Toolkit Now