Even when leaders do have integrity, their employees often see it differently. This is because their employees will observe inconsistent behaviours from their bosses, which while simply thoughtless, will lead them to make judgements about the character of their boss.
Equally, such inconsistencies, or even the want of speaking up on issues, can make a boss seem insincere and dishonest. Leadership is an act of courage and being courageous often means standing up for the things you truly believe in, even in the most difficult of circumstances. Those without integrity will stand up for very little, and hypocrisy quickly follows. They have favourites, whom they shield from the effects of doing shoddy work, or with whom they favour good assignments or great working hours and shifts.
They will expect loyalty but won't be loyal themselves. They divide and conquer, and set up discord in the team, by favouring the opinion of some over others. Members of the team will quickly notice this and then distrust; disengagement and demotivation quickly follow. Distrustful managers will tend to micromanage others, check everything that people are doing, or disbelieve people unless they can conclusively prove their point of view.
This lack of trust will lead to massive bottlenecks. Bottlenecks lead to a loss of productivity. A micromanager will seldom delegate. They ask to be copied in on every email, will want to go to every meeting and will make every decision and solve every problem.
They will then make a really big deal out of working 80 hours a week. They care little that team members feel disenchanted and disempowered. In fact, this actually creates a vicious circle, because if they do sense that this disengagement, they will be even less likely to delegate. Those who never speak up for the values they believe in and make it very difficult for people to read them, set up a wariness among their employees, which also leads to a lack of trust.
Any employee who finds their boss aloof and doesn't really know where their boss is coming from, will regard them as dangerous and unpredictable. When leaders think they are, for example, a great communicator, and members of the team think otherwise, credibility suffers. On the other hand, leaders who show vulnerability are often perceived to be more effective as leaders, because they show more of their human side.
As tough as it is to admit mistakes, humility is one of the most powerful attributes of managers and is a great accelerator of building trust.
Look to your peers for advice and talk to them about the things about your boss that bothers you. Your colleagues are the best resource for that because they are likely going through the same issues you are. Who knows—one of your co-workers may already have a working solution that could be beneficial to the rest of the workplace. Keep your emotions in check, and make sure you vent in a positive and constructive manner. Before that happens, document all interactions in a log or, if possible, with video.
You never know when such documents will come in handy in the future. An incompetent boss can be bad for your wellbeing, so make sure you set boundaries to protect yourself from mental and emotional harm. Remember: you are the one in control of your life, and you can choose to overcome challenges or let them overwhelm you. Sometimes, the best way to win a war is to retreat and re-strategize. If dealing with your boss has become a futile fight, it may be time for you to bow out and take your leave.
Consider looking for a transfer to another department or another employer. And this person has more power than you do. People at the top of an organization may feel threatened if they see someone trying to take down their peer and may be unwilling to help.
Useem agrees. So if you do decide to formally complain, he advises doing it carefully. Test the waters with someone you trust before going to HR or a superior. Both McKee and Useem emphasize that there are times when you are obligated to speak up. In these cases, you need to go to HR and report what you have observed. Be ready to share evidence. Take care of yourself Working for an incompetent boss can be bad for your health. She suggests creating psychological boundaries that protect you from the emotional damage.
Focus on what makes you happy about your job, not miserable. Consider looking for a transfer to a new boss or a new employer. Jeremy had been with the agency for years and was well liked across the organization.
Three months into the job, however, Hilary noticed that Jeremy was not introducing her to people or setting up the meetings he had promised to. Over the next few months, things seemed to get worse. Hilary was frustrated but still determined to get her job done. Shue, for instance, suggests that more companies consider different kinds of promotions, rather than the typical career ladder in which you move from subordinate to manager. She says that some companies have also started to offer two forms of appraisal — a performance review and a management potential review, which considers more specifically the skills that are necessary for leadership.
David Robson is the author of The Intelligence Trap: Why Smart People Make Dumb Mistakes , which explores cutting-edge research on the best ways to improve our decision making and learning. Collective Intelligence. The reasons why people become incompetent at work. Share using Email. By David Robson. Why are so many people so bad at what they do? Every employee tends to rise to his or her level of incompetence — Laurence J Peter.
High levels of incompetence Perhaps spurred on by the financial crisis — and the flawed decision making behind it — much work on the Peter Principle has been conducted within the last decade. Managers who used to be very high-performing sales workers tended not to bring a significant boost to their colleagues.
The hiring dilemma All of this raises a serious dilemma for companies hiring for a vacancy.
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