Five Bosses Who Could Sabotage Your Career

Many bosses are just like you, good people hired by your company to get a job done.  Most would never consciously try to sabotage your career. However, in every company there is usually one who fits a 'Bad Boss' description.  How many of these are there in your company?


1.  The Friend Boss:  This is the boss who wants to be friends with and like by the company employees.  He doesn't see that being a 'friend' to his employees comes at the cost of respect for his own authority.  This boss can be toxic, because he wants You, the manager, to be the 'bad guy' in most scenarios.  While you may not have taken a management position to be friends with subordinates, you will be stuck in the middle when you are required to discipline your boss' friends.

• Your Solution: Be honest with your boss; explain the dilemma his 'friendship' creates for you and for the company.  While you don't want to insult your boss, he needs to know that he is creating an environment that allows disrespect for his authority.

2.  The Micro-Managing Boss:  This boss needs to control everything in his environment.   This is a boss who tells everyone how, when, why, where and what to to do, without thinking twice.  She doesn't care if she's disliked and may not even be aware of the level of micro-management.  This boss typically experiences high turnover of staff, including management, because no one can do anything as well as she can. Most managers under this boss do not have true authority and will usually become frustrated with their position.

• Your Solution: If possible, a 360-degree review may be your best bet, to illustrate the competencies of others in your company.  If that's not possible simply pointing out others' abilities and reinforcing those positive traits may work. If the micro-manager understands that she is not the only one capable of doing the job, she may ease up on those around her. 

3.  The Divorced Boss:  This boss is completely detached from you and the company you work for.  He may have been at the company or in the industry for a very long time and has lost all enthusiasm.  This boss does not take action unless he is forced to do so and will also tend to over-react, to compensate for his lack of interest.  You won't get this boss' suport or input and you may even be held responsible for his expired work ethic.

• Your Solution: Your boss is experiencing burn-out; re-focusing on why he came to work in this industry or what attracted him to the company may be helpful, but still won't fix a long term problem.  If your boss is not the founder or president, you may try approaching Human Resources for help (beware of gossip).  If your boss is The Boss, look for and align yourself with his successor.  If none has been identified, are you a potential candidate?  If not, update your resume.

4.  The Work-a-holic Boss:  Almost every company has the boss who stays late, comes in early and works weekends. Somethimes this boss is mis-labelled as a micro-manager, due to a tendency to get things done.  On the surface, he appears to have it all;  however, he typically lacks connection in his personal life and does not have much interest outside of the workplace.  This boss is defined by his career and often expects the same level of devotion from you.

• Your Solution:  Be flexible in your ability to handle a variety of tasks and responsibilities and remain consistent in your schedule.  This does not mean you should work like a robot or leave before 5:01 each day.   Your boss needs to rely on your abilities and you need to let him see how capable you are.  You also need to establish that you have boundaries; occasionally working late is fine, but consistently working late causes abandonment of your other responsibilities.

5.  The Scatter-Brain Boss:  This boss is disorganized and most likely overwhelmed.  A boss who is always late, loses files, has to find a specific email in order to respond to another message, cannot recall details of prior discussions or works in constant chaos earns this title.  This boss doesn't tell anyone no doesn't have time to get anything organized.  She relies on being overworked when confronted with the inability to get work done.  This boss is hard to work with, because she is always 'putting out a fire' and doesn't delegate, therefore those in her department or on her team are a reflection of her

• Your Soloution: Help her get organized; offer to work with her on a project, instead of waiting for her to ask you.  If you have a good relationship with her you may suggest a project or time management application for her to try.  If you can't go that route, approach HR to discuss your options.

These descriptions are generalizations and the solutions are suggestions; what have others done to mitigate the effects of less than ideal leadership?