Nataly 38 #1 January 7, 2013 I used to have a boss that would take everything on himself, support his troops, et cetera. You could always count on him - he had the respect and admiration of everyone below him (but not above). Of course he never got far in his career, sadly... I've also had bosses that dump everything on their subbordinates. You can count on those people to do whatever it takes for their own career advancement, even if it means stomping on others to get there. Sometimes it works, sometimes people see through this and *nobody* respects them... Shame to see that some people make it on the back of others... And that some people sabotage their own careers for the sake of subbordinates (who aren't always worthy of the sacrifice)... I hate office politics... Even though I know they are a necessary evil... "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
FlyingRhenquest 1 #2 January 7, 2013 In IT (Programming, specifically) a good manager keeps external groups off your back and lets you concentrate on doing your job. I've had three or four good ones over the course of the past couple of decades, but far more bad ones than good ones. Fortunately I rarely work on a team large enough for there to be a whole lot of politics that directly affect me.I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Nataly 38 #3 January 7, 2013 QuoteIn IT (Programming, specifically) a good manager keeps external groups off your back and lets you concentrate on doing your job. I've had three or four good ones over the course of the past couple of decades, but far more bad ones than good ones. Fortunately I rarely work on a team large enough for there to be a whole lot of politics that directly affect me. I have noticed that in highly technical fields, people tend to advance based on their personal performance... Unfortunately, the skills you need to excel at your job aren't necessarily the same skills you need to be a good manager... Maybe it's also true of non-technical fields, but I've had less exposure to those... I know that in the military, leadership and people-skills ranked very high (in theory) in terms of what mattered for getting promoted into a "managerial" role."There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
airdvr 210 #4 January 7, 2013 many people confuse delegating with being dumped on. It has been my experience as a manager and one who has had managers, the best ones are the ones who never ask you to do something they wouldn't do themselves.Please don't dent the planet. Destinations by Roxanne Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mr_Polite 0 #5 January 7, 2013 I had a boss who fired the cleaning staff to save money. Then he told me to go clean the bathroom. 1/2 way through cleaning it he came in and took a massive shit. I was so mad. Threw down the mop and walked out. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Nataly 38 #6 January 7, 2013 Quotemany people confuse delegating with being dumped on. It has been my experience as a manager and one who has had managers, the best ones are the ones who never ask you to do something they wouldn't do themselves. By "dumping on" I meant "blaming everything (bad) on" their subbordinates. This kind of behaviour usually comes with taking the credit for all their subboridinates' (good) work... Very unpleasant people to work for... But like I said... Some people see through this, thankfully. Edited: spelling"There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Southern_Man 0 #7 January 7, 2013 QuoteI had a boss who fired the cleaning staff to save money. Then he told me to go clean the bathroom. 1/2 way through cleaning it he came in and took a massive shit. I was so mad. Threw down the mop and walked out. Yeah, this is being dumped on..."What if there were no hypothetical questions?" Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
FlyingRhenquest 1 #8 January 8, 2013 Yeah, a couple of companies have tried to send me down the management road. That just doesn't feel productive to me. I didn't spend two decades building formidable technical skills just to go into work and spend all my time creating spreadsheets that no one will ever look at. The other advantage to IT is that when one company tries to send you down the management path, you can always find another company that's willing to pay you $10000 a year more to do the same technical work you were doing for the first company I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Stumpy 284 #9 January 8, 2013 Quote Yeah, a couple of companies have tried to send me down the management road. That just doesn't feel productive to me. I didn't spend two decades building formidable technical skills just to go into work and spend all my time creating spreadsheets that no one will ever look at. The other advantage to IT is that when one company tries to send you down the management path, you can always find another company that's willing to pay you $10000 a year more to do the same technical work you were doing for the first company I always think this is strange. SOmeone gets to the top of their field on a technical or specialist skillset, and a company tries to "promote" them into management, which is a completely different skillset! The best companies I have worked for have recognised that and and have had separate career paths for management and technical streams. Generally very technical people make shitty managers too!Never try to eat more than you can lift Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Andy9o8 2 #10 January 8, 2013 QuoteGenerally very technical people make shitty managers too! Doctors and lawyers tend to make shitty managers, too. I think the reason for all 3 is pretty much the same: all of their education was spent learning their craft, but they took few if any management courses. Or maybe they're just all assholes. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Nataly 38 #11 January 8, 2013 QuoteQuoteGenerally very technical people make shitty managers too! Doctors and lawyers tend to make shitty managers, too. I think the reason for all 3 is pretty much the same: all of their education was spent learning their craft, but they took few if any management courses. I don't think courses are what make you a good manager... The types of people who invest all their time on their personal skills (ie: experts) are usually not the same people who like to invest in others people's development. So although courses can give you more tools to work with, these tools won't be much use in the hands of someone who can't (or won't) use them."There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JerryBaumchen 1,468 #12 January 8, 2013 Hi Stumpy, Quote Generally very technical people make shitty managers too! Perchance have you ever been employed by the US federal government? JerryBaumchen Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
