Recognize Micromanagement Motives

Have you ever felt that your boss is managing you in a unique way? Have you ever wondered why he keeps on watching every aspect of your work instead of just leaving it all up to you? At times, it is important to analyze and understand what may be behind these management tendencies. More often than not, there are reasons which may also root from the way you present yourself in the workplace.

Micromanagement may bring about both negative and positive results. The better it is understood and managed, the higher the likelihood that it can be thought of as an advantage rather than a disadvantage.

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   Analyze the dynamics between you and your boss

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   This will tell you a lot about why he is treating you in a certain way. If there are major differences in terms of style or overall work habits, there is likelihood that there will be a tendency to watch over each other closely. This will probably continue to happen until you reach the point where you and your boss are more comfortable with each other.

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2. 2
   Assess how you do your work

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   In most cases, it also has to do with the way you work. If your boss feels he can trust you and your work, there is less tendency for him to actually look into the smaller details. Instead, he will be more preoccupied with the final results that you present to him. If he is unsure of your abilities, he will tend to get involved in the process.

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3. 3
   Reflect on how satisfied your boss is with the results of your work

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   If you have recently been reporting back failures and unsuccessful endeavors, your boss may have no choice but to choose micromanagement. It is his way of ensuring that there are no mistakes along the way that could lead to failure.

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4. 4
   Get to know your boss better

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   In case you are new to the company or have a new boss, micromanagement may occur during the adjustment period. You need to have more information about how your boss works, and it works the same way for him. This clearer understanding of each other is better achieved when you actually spend more time working closely, and this is where micromanagement comes in.

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5. 5
   Consider the purpose of the task assigned to you

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   There are cases where specifically challenging tasks are assigned to an employee to test his limits or to identify whether he may be able to step up to another role in the company. In other words, some companies intentionally assign difficult tasks as a form of training and preparation for promotion. As such, since it is intended to train, you may find that your boss will most likely observe your work through micromanagement. This allows him to be able to determine your capacity and to guide you at the same time, in case there are roadblocks.

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6. 6
   Assess the requirements of the company, as well as the business industry

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   There are certain industries which require a lot more attention to processes such as manufacturing. Although the steps may be repetitive, immediate correction of each mistake committed at every step will go a long way in ensuring that production targets are met. You can even expect supervisors in a manufacturing environment to be monitoring work at least every 30 minutes. In this case, your boss may be micromanaging you based upon what's best for the company.

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7. 7
   Consider the sensitivity and level of importance of the task assigned to you

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   If you are working on a task that is of utmost significance to the company, or one that is going to affect all the other processes, there is a huge tendency for supervisors of these tasks to resolve to micromanagement. This particular approach is intended to control potential risks if any mistakes happen along the process. This is not usually dependent on the individual. Whoever was assigned to perform the task would most likely be managed in a similar way.

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8. 8
   Observe overall team interaction

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   If your work is big on teamwork, you may want to pay attention to how your boss also manages the other team members. If there are similarities, then you can say that he is micromanaging because that is his overall management style. On the other hand, if it appears to be more specific to you, then you may want to reflect about how you work. There may be areas in your work in which you can still improve.

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If you have problems with any of the steps in this article, please ask a question for more help, or post in the comments section below.

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