The boss gives you a task and some room to accomplish. As you present it to him/her they have an opinion on how you should redo it. No matter how many times you redo the task or if you feel it should be done differently with valid support they still say go ahead and work this problem out, except they want you to work it out their way. When you finally complete the task they announce to the board, and the word around the office is that they did a brilliant job. Ask the guy how he accomplished the task and he hasn?t got a clue. If there are any tweaks down the road he can?t do them he has to call upon you.
This is just another type of Micromanager, while they are not constantly over your shoulder every step of the way they use the method of as they like to think ?Refining your work? because how else could they grab the credit.
Micromanagers take perfectly good attributes and work habits and try to tailor them to the way they feel the work should have been done. The results are usually same, but now you have not done it correctly and they are getting the credit. A true Micromanager can be spotted as they start by correcting tiny insignificant details in your project allowing them brand it as their own.
Take back delegated work or take over projects just before completion, again so they can look as if they have run the show. And most importantly a good sign someone is a Micromanager is when they tell you that you have been empowered to do something but they are constantly reminding you who the boss is.
Working under a Micromanager can be debilitating to perfectly good and exceptional employees. No matter what the worker does they feel closed in and maybe even inadequate. Those that are strong enough to stand up to a Micromanager will be terminated as this makes the Micromanager fell inadequate something their egos can just not accept. This stems from a pronounced fear that the talented and skilled working might just replace them.
In all cases the Micromanager feels there are no ways you can accomplish anything without their intervention and guidance. Many times the person is a recent executive or manager with little or no experience, and debilitates or removes anyone competent to get in the way of the mediocre and imagined climb to the top. The sad part is that in this process they destroy a good number of employees, by killing their drive to work. This can be spotted with staff is very punctual about heading for the door come quitting time., and the number of persons directly reporting to this Micromanager seems to change with some consistency. Anyone with equal of superior skills is eliminated usually with made up or imagined faults and discrediting techniques.
With some Micromanagers it is possible to have a discussion and work through this, but with those functioning on ego the best bet it to get transferred or begin looking for new employment.
The most important thing to remember is that it’s not your fault; you probably are talented which is why HR hired you in the first place. Your last job applauded you and was sorry to see you go. Hey you thought you were going to move up and you can just get out from under the disaster waiting happening. So do you know any Micromanagers?