The Hindu Business Line : Problem employer

MANAGEMENT literature is replete with references to the problem worker/employee and learned dissertations on ways of dealing with him. But there is little or no study made of the problem employer and his impact on the organisation. It is odd because in a sense, the problem employee himself may be the creation of the problem boss, just as it is acknowledged that there are no bad followers, but only bad leaders. A problem boss can cause untold damage to the morale, productivity and ultimately, if it is a business enterprise, the profitability of the organisation.

The starting point of the problem in most such cases is his low EQ (emotional intelligence quotient). The problem boss may be so full of himself, and so convinced of his infallibility, as to view others working with him, not as members of a team, or associates, but as inferiors with no right to differ from him. He may, indeed, consider any candid expression of opinion as defiance of his authority. Being emotionally insecure, he is constantly on the lookout for offence, and resorts to a domineering and abrasive attitude demanding unquestioning obedience.

Far from appreciating good work, a problem boss is quick to pick holes and generally destructive in his criticism. Having a closed mind, he is resistant to new ideas and initiatives, and suspicious to the point of being paranoidal. He is a poor listener, and allows his preconceptions and intense likes and dislikes to cloud his judgment. He is not open and transparent in his dealings with colleagues, and is given to unpredictable mood swings. In short, he is all that a good leader should not be.

Here is a dilemma that the employees face. Any attempt to reform him by talking to him directly is out of the question. If he is amenable to such persuasion, he will not be a problem boss in the first place. Organised protest or trade union action is bound to leave a trail of bitterness and invite possible vindictive action. Quitting the job is not a step that can be taken lightly, fraught as it is with the uncertainty and hardship of finding an alternative employment. They eventually decide to fall in with his whims and caprices, and let the organisation go to dogs.

That is why sometimes it looks as if the No 1's of organisations are in greater need of training than their employees.

B.S. Raghavan

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