How to Stop Micromanaging your Team
How to Stop Micromanaging Your Team
Micromanaging is a common management mistake. Micromanaging means "excessive interference by managers in the implementation of tasks performed by subordinate colleagues, which leads to a drop in their productivity and negative stress on working relationships".
Micromanaging can be corrected by eliminating its causes and replacing them with a new set, which generate more productivity and stronger working relationships.
What causes managers to micromanage their staff?
Micromanagement, like all harmful behaviour, is governed by "negative belief systems", which are routinely enacted, and which create their corresponding destructive results.
Micromanaging is caused by the manager holding five specific disempowering beliefs.
The solution to micromanaging is to identify the five causal beliefs, delete them from the management mind-set and replace them with an opposing set of positive beliefs which lead to an Innovative Management Style.
What are the five destructive beliefs that cause micromanagement?
Micromanagers hold one or more of the following beliefs and it drives them to do the wrong things:
- If you want a job done right, you must do it yourself.
- It is quicker if I just tell them how to do it.
- If I leave this task to them, they may do it wrong, and I will have to pick up the pieces, so I had better keep a very close eye on things.
- If I leave this task to them, they will do it differently to the way I would have done it, and I like things done my way!
- If my subordinate colleagues complete this task without my guidance, I may end up making myself surplus to requirements and redundant, so I will keep them in the dark, because MY KNOWLEDGE IS MY POWER!.
Negative thoughts like these, drive negative micromanagement behaviours.
The Solution to Micromanagement
The solution to micromanagement is to cast aside the old beliefs and replace them with those that underpin an innovative management style, as follows:
- I am a limited resource facing an unlimited demand; therefore, I cannot micromanage everything and it would be a mistake to try, which means I must delegate tasks.
- It is quicker if I just tell them how to do it, but that way, they will never learn how to solve problems and there will be no evolutionary progress or innovation.
- If I leave tasks to the wrong people, they will fail, so I will give the right tasks to the right people and give them the necessary support they need, but never more than they need.
- If I leave this task to them, they will do it differently to the way I would have done it, and it will be very interesting to see what new ideas they come up with, since there are many ways to achieve any goal!
- If my subordinate colleagues complete this task without my guidance, then I will have trained a fully functioning team, and I will be more able to concentrate on higher-value tasks, which will make better use of my experience, and may lead to my professional advancement.
Steps to end micromanagement
Micromanagers should compare and contemplate the Micromanager's belief systems and that of the Innovation Manager, and ask themselves two questions:
- Which list corresponds most to my current way of thinking.
- Which set of beliefs, if implemented would lead to greater productivity, greater innovation and better working relationships.
The answer is obvious. Here is a comparison chart.
The above belief systems should be contemplated and compared,
Learn more about Innovative Management
Corporate Coach Group's leadership and management training courses will help you to develop the skills that we've discussed to help you move away from micromanagement.
Sign up for online training, book an open session, or arrange bespoke training for your company.
Definition: micromanagement
Micromanagement is a management behaviour in business where a manager handles every small part of the team's work. The manager watches each step, blocks staff freedom, asks for constant reports, and acts from fear or lack of trust. If any one of these four signs is missing, it is not micromanagement.
Show CG4D Definition
- Controls every small task detail instead of only the goal
- Watches each step and demands constant updates
- Stops staff from choosing how to do the job or making choices
- Driven by fear or lack of trust, which harms morale and results
Article Summary
Managers stop micromanaging when they replace fear-driven beliefs with trust, delegate to the right people and step back; this simple shift lifts morale, sparks fresh ideas and, as Gallup shows, cuts staff turnover by 43% while raising profit by 23%.
Frequently Asked Questions
Here are some questions that frequently get asked about this topic during our training sessions.
What is micromanagement in simple terms?
How can I tell if I am micromanaging my team?
Why do managers start to micromanage?
How does micromanaging affect team productivity?
What belief should replace “I must do everything myself”?
How can I delegate without feeling out of control?
What first step helps me stop micromanaging today?
Thought of something that's not been answered? Ask Us Today!
Did You Know: Key Statistics
Gallup’s 2023 State of the Global Workplace report finds that teams where staff feel trusted and free from micromanagement show 43% lower staff turnover and 23% higher profit than tightly controlled teams. The CIPD Good Work Index 2024 shows that 48% of UK workers feel they are closely watched by their manager and this group records job-satisfaction scores 31% lower than workers who feel trusted.About the Author: Chris Farmer
Chris Farmer is the founder of the Corporate Coach Group and has many years' experience in training leaders and managers, in both the public and private sectors, to achieve their organisational goals, especially during tough economic times. He is also well aware of the disciplines and problems associated with running a business.
Over the years, Chris has designed and delivered thousands of training programmes and has coached and motivated many management teams, groups and individuals. His training programmes are both structured and clear, designed to help delegates organise their thinking and, wherever necessary, to improve their techniques and skills.
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