Most of us have, at sometime in our careers, worked for the boss from hell – or at the very least, we all know someone who has! I’m talking about the boss who is constantly finding fault when things go wrong, while rarely offering praise or encouragement. There are several different kinds of bosses out there – from the bully/autocrat to the bureaucrat and those with more participative styles: The fact is, you could end up with any of these and still find yourself telling your family and friends stories about ‘the boss from hell’. When this happens, it inevitably affects your personal levels of well-being.
But not all bosses who fall into these categories of managerial style are likely to be ‘hellish’ or exhibit bad behaviour, so it’s important to be aware of your boss’ underlying motivations if you are to deal with him/her effectively.
Take ‘the bully’ for example – this is someone who ‘persistently’ demeans, devalues and harasses subordinates in a way that has negative consequences for individuals and the group alike. In a study I carried out with a colleague at Manchester University a number of years ago, with over 5000 employees across about 80 different organisations, people who had been persistently bullied reported significantly poorer mental ill health, lower job satisfaction, more days off due to ill health and told us that they were less productive. So the personal costs are substantial to the employee, but there are also implications for the productivity and morale for the organisation.
There are basically two different types of bullying boss: In the most extreme and rarest form, the bully feels threatened by others and needs to put subordinates down in order to enhance their own self-esteem. It is very difficult to deal with this type of bully, because of the deep-seated drivers of the behaviour – something that cannot be easily resolved or dealt with by employees themselves. This invariably makes it a matter for the bully’s manager and, in reality, leaves employees with two choices – escalate the matter or get out of there and find another job!
For most bullies, however, behaviour is driven by the fact that they, themselves, are so overloaded that they can’t handle their work. This frustrates them and, often lacking the skills to cope, they end up taking it out on their subordinates. There can be several underlying causes of this kind of behaviour: The bullying boss may not be able to handle the pressure inherent in their own job; they may be unable (or unwilling) to delegate to others; or they may habitually blame others when things go wrong, rather than thinking about their own behaviour. Another explanation is that the bully is simply in the wrong job and he/she fundamentally needs to re-evaluate the kind of work that suits him/her best.
However, all is not lost in most cases because, unlike the ‘low self-esteem bully’ the ‘overloaded bully’ can change. It’s perfectly possible for such managers to develop better skills in this area with the right help and support from the organisation and the right motivation to do so. Just as importantly, though, employees can improve the way that they ‘manage upwards’ by being more aware during periods of overload. If employees understand a bit more about the triggers, they can become a source of support rather than contributing further to their boss’ stress and bad behaviour. The fact is that you as an employee can be part of the solution to the problem of the bullying boss!!
