Micromanaging in companies is the habit of managing small tasks, being present in detail, and actively participating in each phase of the processes carried out by the teams.
In this light, it does not seem negative at an organizational level. However, it is usually understood less constructively: the exhaustive monitoring, supervision, or control that a manager exerts over employees’ work, causing undesirable consequences for the work environment, the employee’s professional development, or the quality of their performance. Read more about it in this post.
Causes of micromanaging in companies
Micromanaging in companies may be based, even on an ad hoc basis, on a manager’s need and an employee’s need, for example, someone who has just finished their onboarding process and still needs a very close follow-up. It may also be due to a requirement of the task if it is particularly difficult or important and demands particular involvement from the manager.
When it is not a one-off event but a regular dynamic within the work team is when problems appear, it is advisable to go deeper into their causes.
For example, micromanaging in companies may be encouraged by certain customs or processes that derive from a particular corporate culture. This culture could encourage a paternalistic attitude on behalf of managers towards employees. It could also favor intensely vertical, top-down processes, preventing employees from having a wide margin for decision-making or creativity in the actions and projects they are entrusted with.
Why do managers engage in micromanaging?
Apart from the causes that can be found in this type of corporate culture, we must also look at those causes of micromanaging in companies that have more to do with the personal aspects of the manager who carries it out.
In this sense, to correct a situation detrimental to the employee’s and the organization’s well-being, such as micromanaging in companies, we should ask ourselves: to what aspects of the manager’s personality is it related? Is it a lack of fundamental leadership skills that ends up disguised in the form of cold management? Is it rather a question of authoritarianism and mistrust of employees?
Types of micromanagement in companies
1. Micromanaging in companies due to a lack of leadership
There are leaders who, due to their inexperience managing teams, their lack of knowledge about the work or other aspects of their way of being, feel insecure in their role of coordination and supervision. This insecurity can be experienced in a very uncomfortable way. To alleviate it, the only remedy is to be present at all times in the employee’s work since separating from it awakens the anguish.
2. Micromanaging en las empresas por desconfianza
Other leaders are very self-confident and turn that self-confidence into a paternalistic attitude. This doesn’t need to be unpleasant or based on bad manners but on a lack of certainty about the employee’s ability to carry out their tasks successfully. There can also be a monopolizing and authoritarian view of the job: the desire to be very present in the employee’s work to have the perception that power is exerted and is necessary and to take credit for part of the success of the processes.
In the end, the manager who micromanages in companies ends up investing a large number of their resources (time, energy, attention…) in reviewing, revising, tutoring, or supervising their employee’s tasks. Predictably, they can only use some of these resources to perform their work optimally.
Moreover, when it occurs on a sustained basis over time, micromanaging in companies hinders employees’ professional development. It does not allow them to develop their different actions with autonomy, prevents learning from emerging spontaneously, and takes away employees’ perception of control and creativity in their tasks.
Investing in emotional well-being in companies
At ifeel, the role of managers is fundamental in fostering the best performance of their teams and establishing the optimal conditions for employees’ well-being.
To help them achieve this and establish good communication habits within the organization’s processes, our team of psychologists, experts in well-being at work, has created an emotional well-being service for companies that supports the entire team of a company, including those responsible for Human Resources.
These managers must ensure that the company’s final results are close to the objectives set. This is why it is essential to support them in guiding the relationship between the company and the employee and to ensure that it is as beneficial as possible for both.
That’s why, through our service, you can receive personalized, data-driven advice on improving your teams’ psychological well-being. Are you part of your organization’s Human Resources department? Try our program now and find out how it could help you.
In addition, this program offers all employees a complete mental health care service that they can access in different ways depending on their needs. Those who wish can access an online therapy service with one of our psychologists, specialized in cases like theirs, or interact with one of our professionals to receive emotional support in a more specific circumstance that concerns them.
Of course, in our Resources section, you can find different materials, such as podcasts, HR Guides on various topics (e.g., employee experience or how to design a good HR strategy), or interviews with top HR positions. In addition, we have a Psychosocial Risk Factors Template, which you can use to comply with the requirements of the Labor Inspectorate.
We hope you found this post on micromanaging in companies interesting. If you would like more information about our emotional well-being program for companies, ask us, and we will contact your team as soon as possible.
