5 Tips to Stop Being a Helicopter Manager by Micromanaging Your Team
Not only is being a helicopter manager not a good look, but it has been linked to stunt productivity of employees and across teams, fosters dependency and lowers innovation, and can lead to high turnover. While your intentions are likely good, it’s important to stop micromanaging your team.
Have you ever found yourself trying to “protect” your employees, in hopes that it will help them do their best work? Maybe you picked up this behavior from a former manager, who served more as a shield for your team, intercepting challenges left and right and eliminating all barriers to pave a pathway for collective success.
This behavior, especially in demanding and fast-paced work environments, is almost always rooted in good intentions. However, chronically taking responsibility for your employees in this way can come with some unanticipated consequences: overly dependent employees; a lack of collaboration; and a lower capacity for productivity and innovation.
New Manager? Here are 3 ways to smooth any delegation challenges and prevent micromanaging.
What is a “helicopter manager”?
Not unlike “helicopter parents,” umbrella managers serve a fairly similar purpose: protecting their people from all challenges that may come their way. Not only is this behavior detrimental to the success and wellbeing of the leader, but it also bears quite the burden on employees.
As much as we want to believe otherwise, we simply can’t do it all. So when we bite off more than we can chew, our to-do lists grow overwhelming, our teams miss out on growth opportunities, and we ultimately serve as bottlenecks to what could be collaborative processes.
5 steps that leadership experts and workplace communication strategists agree will help reduce managerial micromanagement
Noticing some of these qualities in your own management style? Don’t worry––leadership experts over at Harvard Business Review have offered us five steps to take when we’re ready to put those good intentions toward actionable change:
Identify what’s beneath your instinct to protect
Perhaps you feel as though everything would crumble if your employees failed, jeopardizing your collective success. Maybe you find your value as a manager in your ability to represent every part of their work. Whatever the reason, challenge yourself to release this underlying belief and evaluate how your current approach might actually be setting your team back.
Assume your team is capable of handling what comes their way
Trust that their competencies, experiences, and perspectives– gained before and after joining your company– have prepared them for the challenges that may arise. You hired them, after all! Carrie Addington, author of Facilitation in Action, says, “I like to hold my team ‘able’ instead of accountable”, shifting the focus from compliance to capability. Adopting this mindset not only releases the fear that your employees might be in over their heads, but it simultaneously empowers them to independently get creative about problem-solving opportunities.
View failure as an opportunity for growth
As opposed to catastrophizing the consequences of an employee’s mistake, think of them as an opportunity to become aware of weaknesses and areas for improvement. Not only are mistakes human, but they grant us formative learning experiences that enable us to grow in personal and professional ways.
Equip your team with the resources needed to navigate challenges
When an employee comes to you with a challenge, lead by asking what resources and support will allow them to overcome it, instead of putting yourself at the center of the challenge for them. Sometimes these challenges are as simple as closing a knowledge gap or redirecting them to the appropriate resources. Whatever the solution, ensure that you are equipping your employee with what they need to navigate the challenge at hand.
Model approaching obstacles with curiosity instead of fear
Lend your newfound mindset to your team by empowering them to approach challenges with a desire to learn, bend, and grow, as opposed to lingering with the fear of failure. When you exhibit this approach, soon your employees will feel prepared to tackle obstacles with confidence and independence, eliminating any expectation to be protected by the difficulties that may accompany them.
Empower both you and your team with the ability to navigate challenges
When we’re set in our ways, it can be incredibly difficult to break habits around protecting our employees from minor annoyances and daunting obstacles alike; but it’s vital that we remember that these experiences double as personal and professional development opportunities. After we equip and empower our teams with what they need to navigate these challenges, we not only relieve ourselves of unnecessary hovering, but we gain new collaborators who are more engaged in their work than ever.
Currently struggling with umbrella management and eager to shake it for the growth of your team? Book a 30 minute strategy call with us here, and we’ll dig into how we can apply today’s guidance to your own management style.
