October 17, 2019

Mindful Management – 5 Tips For Creating A Productive Workplace Without Micromanaging

Photo: rawpixel.com/Pexels No-one wants to be that manager all the employees whisper about in the lunchroom. The one who looks over their shoulders, makes them feel inept, and less productive due to the untrusting environment created by incessant micromanaging. It’s important to be available to your employees, involved in their work, and clear on the desired outcomes. However, being constantly fixated on their productivity is, ironically, a surefire way to create an unproductive environment. To help you navigate the fine line between being an involved manager and a micromanager, here are four strategies to employ in the workplace: 1. Take advantage of technology No employee feels happy when they feel that their superiors are watching their comings and goings like a hawk. Utilising technology such as time clocks that use biometric identification to sign people in and out can encourage staff accountability, while removing the managerial team from the equation. It a simple way to achieve healthy staff punctuality and attendance without the emotional baggage. What’s more, with the data available whenever required, managers can get on with the job of running the organisation, rather than watching where their team members are at all times. 2. Set clear goals for every project With major projects, it can be tempting to maintain a high level of involvement. However, this communicates to your staff that you don’t trust them to do the job for which you hired them. Instead of keeping a hand in the game, or worse, taking over aspects of their work, make the outcomes for this project unequivocally clear from the start. Convey to your staff how much faith you have in their skills, and equip them with one of the many intuitive project management tools on the market to help them organize and execute every aspect of the work with ease. Such a system will also help you monitor their progress without interfering, making it a win-win all around. 3. Ask and learn To be an effective leader, you need to understand the people you’re leading. Every person on your team is unique, and each one will respond in different ways to different leadership styles. This means you need to be flexible in your approach to management. The simplest way to get started on this is to ask your employees what they need to be happy and productive. You’d be surprised at how open people are willing to be when given the opportunity to have a say in how they’re managed. One person might do well with regular reminders of important tasks while another’s productivity might soar when they are given autonomy over their projects. Obviously, you will need to monitor the results as people don’t always know themselves as well as they think they do. However, the first step is always to ask. 4. Educate The distinction between work and school has all but crumbled in the 21st century. The benefits of lifelong education for both the individual and the company they work for have been well researched. A workplace in which employees are always learning and growing is one in which they will be motivated to be more productive. The skills they develop will be of benefit to them as individuals and to your business, meaning everyone profits. The one thing worse than being constantly shadowed by a nagging micromanager is realizing that you’re the managerial monster everyone dreads. However, if you outsource tedious tasks to technology, communicate clearly with employees, understand their unique personalities, and offer them educational opportunities, you can get the best out of them without being overbearing. Photo: rawpixel.com

No-one wants to be that manager all the employees whisper about in the lunchroom. The one who looks over their shoulders, makes them feel inept, and less productive due to the untrusting environment created by incessant micromanaging.

It’s important to be available to your employees, involved in their work, and clear on the desired outcomes. However, being constantly fixated on their productivity is, ironically, a surefire way to create an unproductive environment.

To help you navigate the fine line between being an involved manager and a micromanager, here are four strategies to employ in the workplace:

1. Take advantage of technology

No employee feels happy when they feel that their superiors are watching their comings and goings like a hawk. Utilising technology such as time clocks that use biometric identification to sign people in and out can encourage staff accountability, while removing the managerial team from the equation. It a simple way to achieve healthy staff punctuality and attendance without the emotional baggage. What’s more, with the data available whenever required, managers can get on with the job of running the organisation, rather than watching where their team members are at all times.

2. Set clear goals for every project

With major projects, it can be tempting to maintain a high level of involvement. However, this communicates to your staff that you don’t trust them to do the job for which you hired them. Instead of keeping a hand in the game, or worse, taking over aspects of their work, make the outcomes for this project unequivocally clear from the start.

Convey to your staff how much faith you have in their skills, and equip them with one of the many intuitive project management tools on the market to help them organize and execute every aspect of the work with ease. Such a system will also help you monitor their progress without interfering, making it a win-win all around.

3. Ask and learn

To be an effective leader, you need to understand the people you’re leading. Every person on your team is unique, and each one will respond in different ways to different leadership styles. This means you need to be flexible in your approach to management. The simplest way to get started on this is to ask your employees what they need to be happy and productive.

You’d be surprised at how open people are willing to be when given the opportunity to have a say in how they’re managed. One person might do well with regular reminders of important tasks while another’s productivity might soar when they are given autonomy over their projects. Obviously, you will need to monitor the results as people don’t always know themselves as well as they think they do. To aid with this, you may wish to conduct a DiSC personality test. Discovering the different DiSC styles each employee possesses can help you better understand their needs and tailor your approach accordingly. However, the first step is always to ask.

4. Educate

The distinction between work and school has all but crumbled in the 21st century. The benefits of lifelong education for both the individual and the company they work for have been well researched. A workplace in which employees are always learning and growing is one in which they will be motivated to be more productive. The skills they develop will be of benefit to them as individuals and to your business, meaning everyone profits.

The one thing worse than being constantly shadowed by a nagging micromanager is realizing that you’re the managerial monster everyone dreads. However, if you outsource tedious tasks to technology, communicate clearly with employees, understand their unique personalities, and offer them educational opportunities, you can get the best out of them without being overbearing.

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