According to the Business Class blog of American Express, micro-management has the three basic forms described below.
Checking on every step of the employee
This is the most typical form of micro-management. The manager checks on every step the subordinate makes; they stand behind their back all the time and keep giving advice (often with good intentions). This makes the employee feel they are not trusted; they lack the space to work on their agenda independently and can barely breathe.
Solution: Allow employees more freedom. Do not check on their every step; instead, talk to them about long-term goals they will be responsible for achieving without your constant supervision.
Focusing on goals, not on people
A good manager must, of course, keep an eye on the results of the team and individual employees. On the other hand, they should also avoid viewing employees as inanimate machines and looking only at the results of their work. Micro-management can manifest itself as depersonalisation, within which the manager does not consider the human side of subordinates and only forces them constantly to achieve perfect results.
Solution: Regard team members as human beings. Talk to them and be interested in them also on a personal level.
Unclear goals and plans
A quite surprising, yet logical consequence of micro-management may be the fact that the manager does not establish clear goals employees should reach and equally clear plans they should follow. This is because the manager believes their own leadership means employees do not need to know about individual goals and plans: these are unnecessary for them to do their work under the manager's brilliant supervision.
Solution: Every employee must have their goals clearly defined; they should know what is expected of them and how they can reach these goals. You must define individual goals to each of your employees and work with them individually on their personal development.
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