My boss keeps going directly to people in my team with instructions that override my decisions. How can I stop him? It’s making me want to leave
People in supervisory roles often suffer from an undermining boss in the early days following a promotion – when perhaps the boss isn’t used to you delegating to others. Occasionally though, a boss might behave inappropriately if they think that you’ve been making wrong decisions. A worse state of affairs is where your boss wasn’t the one who promoted you and disagrees with the decision, making things awkward for everyone.
Going over your boss’s head to complain about what’s going on may well exacerbate the situation. Far better for the two of you to try forge a better partnership.
Ask your boss for a meeting – but make an appointment, rather than steaming in immediately, all fired up for an argument. By all means, mention that there are a couple of things that are concerning you about the workplace but that you’re sure they can be worked out.
Have specific examples to give your boss, rather than making sweeping generalisations such as ‘You always say such-and-such’, or ‘Every time I say this, you say that’. These are not nearly as effective as real-life scenarios. Better still, present written evidence (such as e-mails or memos). Say that you feel you’d be better able to do your job (and thereby support your boss in his) if counter-commands were first discussed with you or at least directed via you. Ask – and be direct about this – what management skills he thinks you may lack and in which you could be coached or trained, as well as asking where he sees the dividing lines of authority between each of you. Courteously request that these lines could be communicated to the team and respected by both of you.
Tackling the issue head-on will hopefully result in a calmer atmosphere. Your boss will not want things to escalate as it will reflect badly on him. Open discussion may save the day