Critical leadership and set-up-to-fail syndrome

Abstract

This paper focuses on the issue of the so-called "set-up-to-fail syndrome" which is a situation when employees perceived to be ineffective and weak performers by their managers start living down to their low expectations. We argue that setup to fail syndrome can be caused both by the lack of motivation and skills on the employee's side but also by the lack of critical leadership skills on the side of the manager. In addition, the paper tackles the problem of micromanagement in business companies or public institutions. We show that micromanaging employees might become one of the leading factors for poor performance and failure. We conclude that a successful manager should learn how to steer her or his subordinates and develop effective leadership skills in order to become a trusted leader instead of a bullying and controlling boss. It is apparent that it takes time and effort to build such skills as communication and team collaboration, but many examples show that they can be acquired. Becoming a critical leader, not a micromanager, would considerably contribute to enhancing the quality of work and interactions at any workplace.

Micromanagement and its impact on millennial followership styles

“…Micromanagement is classified by Erickson et al (2015) as a form of destructive leadership whereby supervisors oversee their subordinates to such an extent that it becomes excessive, while White (2010) defines micromanagement as scrutinising behaviour on the smallest details and higher-level issues being neglected. Other qualities include overcriticising subordinates' judgements (Gardanova et al, 2019). Austin and Larkey (1992) viewed micromanagement as the polar opposite to delegatory management where employee trust is paramount.…”

“…Micromanagement is a leadership style that carries somewhat varying opinions among researchers. The general consensus defines micromanagement as leaders who control their employees in a manner viewed as domineering and extreme (Gardanova et al ., 2019; Wendler, 2013; White, 2010), and as such, it is a negative style (Cho et al. , 2017).…”

“…Micromanagement is a leadership style that carries somewhat varying opinions among researchers. The general consensus defines micromanagement as leaders who control their employees in a manner viewed as domineering and extreme (Gardanova et al, 2019;Wendler, 2013;White, 2010), and as such, it is a negative style (Cho et al, 2017). Pastel (2008), however, views micromanagement as a form of centralised decision-making and an effective approach in mitigating risks, a viewpoint which Delgado et al (2015) view as an illusion.…”