Toxic Management

One of the Blogs I read sent me to the following site http://politiken.dk/newsinenglish/article766260.ece.

It is a study by a Danish expert describing a Danish hospital executive that actually caused his employees to become ill. That is ironic. Where people go to get well is being served by folks who are sick of their work.

I have heard more about this since coming to Hillsboro. It tells me that much of the "new fangled" stuff is leaving out the most important part of managing people. Relationships and behavior of the staff make a ton of difference when dealing with customers. I listen to the Manager Tools podcast every week. If there is one thing I have learned by listening, it is the communication skills of the manager helps create the environment where employee behavior creates the work making the organization successful.

The problem with these toxic managers is that they appear to be doing some good things at the expense of the people who support their work. Workers hope that these managers will be found out and fired. The trouble is that it takes time to see the good people going out the door for Boards to see the trend. In the mean time, good people are gone and performance suffers with the lack of experience of the new employees.

Managers seem to think it is the "bad attitude" of the folks leaving rather than understanding the real problem is the managers themselves.

Boards of Directors, Governing Bodies and senior managers need to spend more time in the hiring process evaluating the potential executive. So much rides on the success of the organization's health that they must select managers who can manage people well and get the job done. This is one reason I spend time at the Manager Tools web site.

Still, there are still too many bosses that believe that they have the God given right to act that way because they are in the "Boss" position.

In graduate school, I read and studied Douglas McGregor's Theory X (the drill sergeant)/Theory Y (relationship manager). The role of an organization's leader is to do two things. The first is the successful completion of the work the organization is there to do. The second is to get people to do the work willingly. Work can be enjoyable and fun while getting the main purpose of the organization accomplished. A tyrant boss can get things done—for awhile—then the organization will deteriorate.

Organizations have a duty to teach "management" and have that be a key trait before making people managers. Just because you are smart, have a degree or are competent in a field of work doesn't qualify someone for a manager's role.