Managers Want Employees Who Don’t Need To Be Managed

It’s Time To Rethink How We Evaluate Employees

After twenty-something years managing teams of people, thinking that I was doing all the right things, I have come to a conclusion that the people I best manage are the people who need the least amount of management support, and I didn’t spend enough time with the people I should have been managing. And I’m guessing I’m not alone.

Photo by Dylan Gillis on Unsplash

What Do Employees Want From A Manager?

Talk to anyone with a boss, or check out online forums, and you will see some traits that are commonly expected or needed from employees. A manager should:

• Provide clear expectations about what an employee needs to do — both with individual tasks and long-term job performance
• Provide coaching for skills and job roles where the employee lacks experience or competencies
• Be available for employee-driven interactions, both regularly-scheduled and ad hoc.
• Manage/guide employees according to where they are in terms of skills and experience, not where the manager wants them to be
• Communicate to employees in a way that employees can understand
• Look for opportunities to grow the skills of the employee, and provide job…