Are You a Terrible Manager?

How the pandemic made bad managers worse

by Kevin Loux, Chief Impact Officer, Charlotte Works

What do current trends like the Great Resignation, Quiet Quitting and Low Productivity have in common? Conventional leadership that fails to embrace a new more supportive work environment for employees with more flexible work options than ever before. If you are struggling with talent retention or low productivity, your management style could be the reason. If so, there is a lot you can do in a short span of time to fix the problem.

We know the pandemic was hard on everyone and widened inequality, but one group it especially impacted was bad managers.

The pandemic exacerbated gaps in outdated management styles and worsened bad managers as many began working from home, according to an October 2021 article on Humu.com. This transition to a virtual community has resulted in a trickle-down impact on organizations across all industries, driving higher turnover rates, lower productivity and an increase in quiet quitting. Managers who struggle to adapt face challenges with employee engagement, productivity and responsiveness from team members. Unfortunately, outdated management has an equally outdated solution to this problem: returning to in-office work.

Larry Fink of Black Rock Capital said returning to the office would increase productivity and offset inflationary pressures. We can see why it makes sense to conventional managers; they were not as bad when everyone was in the office. They didn’t need to plan and prioritize; they could easily interrupt subordinates. They could ensure productivity theater, micromanage and feel connected to the team without having to form genuine relationships. The fact is that managing remote teams is more difficult and requires creativity and additional skills. Therefore, returning to familiar office management practices makes sense to conventional managers. Unfortunately, sticking to what has worked in the past and ignoring the need for innovation is often what sinks companies.

Our talent surveys at Charlotte Works have repeatedly shown that employees are willing to leave jobs for flexibility and remote work. While employers are used to having almost all the leverage when dealing with employees, that is drastically shifting today. With the proliferation of remote work, companies are competing for talent more today than ever before, as job opportunities are no longer limited by physical geography. Just as eCommerce drastically shifted the balance of power in retail, remote work is increasing competition for talent.

If managers are making employees come into the office more than the job functions require, that company is putting itself at a competitive disadvantage for talent. The Charlotte area went from around 80,000 remote workers in 2019 to over 330,000 in 2021 that has also resulted in the in-person labor force in this area contracting by almost 20 percent. Companies competing for in-person talent have about 1 million local workers versus 27 million remote workers nationally.

This isn’t to say that all work must be remote. Certain jobs and roles will always need to be done in person, but managers need to be honest about what is required and what is not. If employees see companies requiring a return to office for the type of work that they have been doing remotely since the start of the pandemic, it will likely tank morale. While intentional and genuine efforts to build culture are one thing, vague platitudes from management about developing a better work environment will only reinforce the feeling of inauthenticity and the knowledge that managers are not interested in supporting their employees. Returning to the office under the guise of productivity or getting back to normal is a bad management feedback loop that will only snowball the problem for companies that take this approach. Productivity theater doesn’t drive results, and neither does intentionally decreasing employee morale. This will only ensure that top talent flees to competitors with more flexibility. This ensures that all that will remain at these companies are those without other options and individuals will continue to quietly quit as they gain the experience or skills they need.

Returning to office work is not a solution for low productivity or communication challenges. What is needed is an honest assessment of managerial performance and what managers need to better engage employees. At the end of the day, managers are responsible for team performance and should be held accountable for performance without simply deflecting accountability due to shifts in what is required out of managers.

For managers struggling today, what can be done? There is no one size fits all solution. It is about getting creative and being willing to explore a fresh and innovative approach. An example might be leveraging technology to give shift workers more flexibility in scheduling. We have seen restaurants offer paid time off, or adopt intentional strategies to source more non-traditional talent. What is more important is what we haven’t seen; success with the status quo.

For managers with teams that can perform their jobs remotely, finding success is about embracing flexibility while empowering and motivating your team. Developing team members skills to selfmanage, work autonomously and promoting asynchronous communication will help team members with work-life balance and help create dedicated focus time. This is easier said than done, but listening to employees, supporting their personal well-being and building strong relationships is key. P