Speaking indirectly to employees 1

[Plasmech]

Does anyone run into this:

completly random example here...

Boss thinks you're spending too much time on the phone (again, this is a very "randomized" example). Instead of confronting YOU about your phone time, he complains to you about your co-worker John Doe who works in another facility spending too much time on the phone. Really makes him out to be a bad employee.

First of all, what is this behavior called? Is there a better name for it than "indirect speaking"? Some sort of very transparent smokescreen...

-Plasmech

Mechanical Engineer, Plastics Industry

 

[Zogzog]

Wussy-ness

 

[TheTick]

In Dilbert-ese: PHB-ness

 

[GregLamberson]

Plasmech

I believe weakleadershipobia is the technical term for it.

I know what you mean, and it's not fair to the employee who needs to have a behavior discussed directly with him/her; not fair to the employee who is being talked about and it makes the boss look just as he/she is - poor at managing employees.

Greg Lamberson, BS, MBA
Consultant - Upstream Energy
Website:

http://www.oil-gas-consulting.com

 

[ivymike]

management by parable?

Perhaps you should tell him about a former co-worker who tried and tried, unsuccessfully, to reach a client via email. After giving up on ever getting a response, he rationalized by saying "the conversation probably would have led to scope creep anyway."

 

[lownox]

Not the same, but I work for a manager whom won't speak directly to the "offender", but rather will send an email to the entire department stating things in generality. ALMOST.

He will most often state (to all) that one person in the dept has been observed doing (the offending act) and that this is against policy and won't be tolerated. All this without ever speaking to the individual directly ever.

Poor management IMO. He calls it diplomacy. I call it avoidance.

 

[Rjeffery]

Passive/Aggressive or some other PC term... sounds like a P^3 manager (P!$$ Poor Performer) to me

The best way to test something is to squeeze it, slowly, until it breaks!

 

[ctopher]

It's called "immature" and/or "ignorant".

Chris
SolidWorks/PDMWorks 08 3.1
AutoCAD 06/08
ctopher's home (updated 10-07-07)

 

[MadMango]

You guys are being a bit harsh. A general email to remind people of policy is not a bad thing. If one person is doing something wrong, I'd have one conversation (or in this case email) with the entire department.

"Art without engineering is dreaming; Engineering without art is calculating."

Have you read faq731-376 to make the best use of Eng-Tips Forums?

 

[msquared48]

I agree - passive agression. In other words, he is not good with confrontation.

Call him on it - ask him if he thinks you are spending too much time on the phone too, or whatever he has chosen to complaoin to you about. Another idea is to suggest that he should take up the matter with the offenders.

Mike McCann
MMC Engineering

 

[TheTick]

A fine example of management sans leadership. A manager should never gossip about problems with subordinates. There is no constructive outcome.

If it's a big enough problem to talk about, it's big enough to talk to the individual directly about.

 

[IRstuff]

Pitiful. A manager should NEVER discuss a subordinate's behavior with another subordinate, UNLESS, that subordinate is specifically chartered to be some sort of deputy manager.

Reminds of a time when my manager's manager hauls me and one of his subordinates into his office. He then tongue lashes his subordinate in front of me. Ten minutes later, he slows down enough for my compatriot to ask the reason for his discourse; it's the late weekly status report, of course! Naturally, I had nothing to do with that, and was apparently inadvertently caught up the maelstrom.

TTFN

FAQ731-376

 

[Plasmech]

Glad I am not the only one who seriously questions this behavior.

-Plasmech

Mechanical Engineer, Plastics Industry

 

[PhilBW]

If my boss told me about a "John Doe" who uses the phone too much and I suspected he was really talking about me, I would probably say something like "You never need to worry about me. I always make sure I don't spend too much time on the phone." That makes him think I missed his point completely, and then he can either confront me directly or drop the whole issue.

Phil

 

[TheTick]

Perhaps relay a story to your boss about a hypothetical manager that is a jerkwad that is unable to communicate directly with his subordinates because of some gross character defect.

 

[ivymike]

...that was the point of my comment about parable management (and the fox & grapes allusion)

 

[macmet]

Where I sit I can see the exit of our building, and late one night I was sitting at my desk and my boss stormed out of the building. I thought it was weird but didn't think anything of it. A little while later I checked my email and he had sent me a pretty nasty email about a few things and said we had to talk about it tomorrow. I emailed him back and said we could talk whenever was good for him and that I'd be in the office all day. I went into his office twice that day to talk to him but he never brought up that email. He still has never brought it up, it's like it never happened.

 

[tickle]

Slow down every one. So the boss, on paper, has done something wrong, is a P^3 manager etc etc

However, the boss is human too. They may not have a good handle on what you are doing, is confused by it all and does not know how to handle it. The boss is asking one of the subordinates to get their opinion. From the bosses perspective you are spending too much time on the phone. (I am not saying that there is not a valid reason). If your colleague can rationalise the problem to the boss, every one is a winner (maybe). The boss has not fired off at you (and lost face), you have not been fired off at (and feel narked by it) and it is water under the bridge. Perhaps the person in the wrong is the colleague who is letting you know that the boss is talking to him.

Just playing devils advocate.

Tickle

 

[IRstuff]

"Really makes him out to be a bad employee"

Doesn't sound much like a solicitation for an alternate opinion. And again, to talk to one subordinate with another is bad form, and presents a chilling and hostile environment. If he says this about someone else, what is he saying about you to someone else?

TTFN

FAQ731-376

 

[Plasmech]

Yea I wasn't like trying to hear the other side of the argument here because let's face it, there isn't one. I really just want to know what this behavior is called...what it's name is.

-Plasmech

Mechanical Engineer, Plastics Industry