The Micromanagement ‘Disease’
By Lalita / Filed under Agile, Scrum / December 6th, 2011
Definition:
Micromanagement is when a manager excessively monitors every little aspect of their subordinates’ work, thereby making those workers feel that the boss is ‘breathing down their necks’. The ‘control freak’ manager gets irritated when a subordinate makes decisions without consulting them even if those decisions are totally within that subordinate’s level of authority.1
“For software engineering, in particular, micromanagement is especially pathological, and can be devastating to the enterprise.” 2 Firstly, this is because programming involves solving problems and software engineers would prefer to choose the methodology for solving those problems. If they were instructed to just type out the code, their creativity and autonomy would be stifled, thereby encouraging them to seek employment elsewhere.2
Secondly, programming is a very complex and dynamic experience. Very often, a newer and better understanding of the problem renders modification to the code. “Managers don’t have time to internalize the amount of knowledge needed to execute on the engineering side in such a complex, changing environment.”2
Despite this, there is a tendency for managers of large software firms to micromanage, as the company code base becomes larger and the risk to the company grows.2
Symptoms observed in the subordinates:
- The employees have begun realizing that the manager is not listening to their feedback. So, they begin to shut down and they stop making suggestions or being straightforward with them.3
- Disengagement—They do the basic work and that’s about it; they are no longer willing to go the extra mile for the benefit of the company.3
-
Their apathy is contagious, thereby decreasing the overall productivity of other colleagues as well.3
Symptoms observed in the micromanagers:
- Micromanagers supervise or control every single task performed, regardless of its complexity or the workers’ familiarity with that task.
- They do not trust or believe in others’ capabilities.
- Micromanagers compulsively oversee the work of high-performing as well as poorly-performing employees.
Prognosis (what the future for those suffering from the micromanagement ‘disease’ looks like):
-
“Micromanagement stifles manager–employee:
-communication,
-creativity,
-productivity,
-problem-solving,
-flexibility,
-trust,
-feedback,
-interest, and
-openness.”3 -
It also adversely affects company growth and goal attainment.3
-
Due to excessive micromanagement, the company may lose many of its talented employees to other companies.
Treatment:
With the help of Scrum/Agile philosophy, the manager shifts from being a ‘controller’ to that of an ‘enabler’ who establishes priorities and eliminates impediments as they are identified.4
In contrast, the subordinates change from being ‘individuals reporting to bosses’ to ‘members of an accountable, self-organising team’ that works in short cycles without any managerial interference.4
“Scrum is an effective way for managers to:
-
iteratively evaluate features in development,
-
to prioritize the next batches of work, and
-
to manage the feature backlog.”2
However, there are some software professionals who feel that Scrum methodology like the Daily Stand-up, is actually synonymous with micromanagement. In defence of Scrum values, micromanagement refers to overly detailed management by the administration (and not the team). “While the team micromanages its every day actions on a daily basis, the administration micromanages the release content on the iteration level.”5
While writing software programs, bugs are often encountered and appropriate solutions to those bugs are devised. So, it makes immense sense that the team has a Daily Stand-up, thereby enabling it to discuss possible problems and improvements to the software program. Therefore, “when the team discusses their daily tasks, they are micromanaging for the benefit of the team and the organization as a whole.”5
Endnotes
1 “Self-Organisation and Transparency: Team Freedom or a Path to Micro-Management,” Give Thanks For Scrum 2011 Transparency and Micromanagement, accessed November 29, 2011, http://www.slideshare.net/dlefebvre1701/give-thanks-for-scrum-2011-transparency-and-micromanagement.
2 John Umbaugh, “Micromanagement in the Software Engineering Industry,” Yahoo Voices, accessed November 29, 2011, http://voices.yahoo.com/micromanagement-software-engineering-industry-6631104.html.
3 Kenneth E. Fracaro, “The Consequences of Micromanaging,” Contract Management July 2007: 4-8, accessed November 29, 2011, http://www.ncmahq.org/files/Articles/ECB0A_CM0707_C01.pdf.
4 Steve Denning, “Six Common Mistakes That Salesforce.com Didn’t Make,” Forbes, April 18, 2011, accessed December 01, 2011, http://www.forbes.com/sites/stevedenning/2011/04/18/six-common-mistakes-that-salesforce-com-didnt-make/.
5 Vikas Hazrati, “Agile is Micromanagement,” Info Q, November 10, 2009, accessed December 01, 2011, http://www.infoq.com/news/2009/11/agile-micromanagement.
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