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This one goes out to the my fellow middle managers…

Chances are many of you Middle Managers out there have been in your current position for a long time. I also know that many of you are far more capable than what your position or paycheck indicates, but your circumstances keep you in the middle management position.

With that in mind, you may end up working for someone in upper management who is inept at their job. You may even begin to resent them for their weakness. So what do you do?

(this article is not referring to a boss who is lazy. We are referring to a boss who cares and tries hard but just does not have the ability to perform his or her job.)

• First off, don’t make your weak and low-performing boss feel badly. If he has been put into a position he can’t handle, he’s probably feeling the stress himself. You should reach out to him and offer some advice and help, but do it in a tactful way that is non-threatening. A good senior manager will seek out middle managers who carry tenure and respect, and utilize them. This is your chance to inject some of your knowledge and experience to boost his abilities and confidence. Thus, he will become your supporter and your follower!
• Find something good about him or her. Listen, you can find a strong quality or two in any person. Search hard, find the good, and focus on it. Most people can focus on the negatives fairly easily, but it takes real character to find the good in someone and dwell on it! You should make it a point to do the latter. You will be a happier person for it, trust me.
• Support him behind his back. Once again, I am assuming that you are well-respected in your company and other middle and junior managers look to you as a mentor. Chances are if you have noticed your senior manager’sweaknesses, then so have they and will be vocal to you about it. This is your chance to say something good about the senior manager and openly demonstrate your respect for him. If you show respect for him and his position, you inadvertantly strengthen your own!

• Remember your place. In the long run, he will dig his own grave, so to speak. You should be mindful to accept your roll in the company, do your job with 100% effort and bring in the results you are expected to deliver. This is what being a team player is all about.

Remember, you work for yourself, your employees and your family, even if you have to work for a weak inept senior manager. You get what you are, and you can make the most of any situation if you will have a good attitude!

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Hey Boss: Do you look at your employees as disposable and useless nuisances? Do you think the people who work for you are lazy and worthless? Do you tell other managers what pieces of garbage work for you? Do you tell your spouse that your people just don’t care?

Guess what? …it’s your fault, not theirs.
(employees, I’ll be hitting you in a later post, so be ready!)

To the bosses:
If your people are useless and negative, it’s because you are a bad leader, period.

A famous Baptist preacher once said, “Everything rises and falls on leadership.”
That statement is true in business, politics and even your personal life.
There are “bad” employees.
I realize there are people out there who are just out to screw over an employer, but it is your job to have a progressive discipline policy intact so you can weed them out quickly, consistently and fairly. Be methodical, and make the right decisions.
Some employees are like a cancer that will spread to others, and you either need to get these people on board by leading them to success, or get rid of them so they don’t drag down the others. You owe it to yourself AND your people to weed out the bad apples. The “good” employees will take notice and respect you for it, as most people do not truly want to work in a miserable environment.
If you are unaware of how to do this, or unwilling to experience the pain and stress involved, then you are the one in the wrong position and should step aside or down.
 

“You GET What You ARE”
Another issue that could be causing your employees to disrespect you are your own work habits, appearance and mannerisms.

• If you arrive everyday to work late, they see that.
• If you call in sick often, they will too.
• If you do not follow company dress code policy, they won’t either.
• If you take frequent coffee and/or smoke breaks, your employees will also.
• If you surf the internet all day checking your email and MySpace, your employees will too.
• And here’s an important one: If you bitch and complain openly about your own boss, your employees will bitch and complain about you.
• This will also shape a negative view of all levels of management in your company, which will eventually come through to your customers.
  
• “What you do to your employees, they do to your customers,” - unknown

How to turn it around
Once you rid yourself of the bad apples, and fix your own shortcomings, it’s time to lead your team.
“A Leader is someone who instills within the heart of the follower, a desire to follow” - Wendell Evans

You should look to invest in your employees. Teach them to be successful and work to help them achieve. Show them how to be like you!
Let them know where they stand by setting proper expectations, and recognize them when they hit or exceed goals.
Finally, find each employee’s “hot button” and push it when appropriate.
A hot button is that one thing that the employee is most motivated by. For some, it’s recognition, others awards, money or time off. Still others just want to know they have job security and the potential to advance.
It’s easy to find a hot button by simply asking and paying attention to unspoken signs.

Remember, Boss, it is you alone who should be shaping the future of your team. They will be what you lead them to be, and that starts with you earning their respect and using it for good.

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