Why Working Managers Don't Work Working managers often have to roll up their sleeves and pitch in to get the work done. However, this behavior doesn't actually help productivity or organizational growth.
By Andrea Olson
Opinions expressed by BIZ Experiences contributors are their own.
The term "working manager" is used to describe a leader who not only directs and delegates work but also rolls up their sleeves and pitches in to get the job done. This is the case in many organizations, especially those who are small businesses with limited resources or large companies where there's an inherent pride in having managers that also step in and pick up the slack. In some organizational cultures, the norm is that no one is too special or good to not share the work. While working managers may save the company unnecessary dedicated supervisory costs, or create a superficial perception that no one is above hard work, this approach undermines the role of a manager itself.
No one enjoys it when the proverbial boss is sitting back and relaxing while their team is burning the midnight oil. However, a working manager isn't the solution. Working managers often spend more time doing than managing, guiding, mentoring, leading, measuring and improving team performance. This undermines the overall effectiveness of the team, as well as eliminates the ability for the team to grow and advance their capabilities and productivity. It stems from three core problems with the working manager concept:
Problem 1: Spread too thin
Whether your managers are performing as supplemental designers, sales reps or product engineers, the issue lies with holding them accountable for delivering on a work quota, in addition to simultaneously expecting them to lead a team, coordinate with other departments and interact with other managers throughout the course of business.
For example, if working managers take their managerial duties as their first priority, they will be slow to respond to customer needs, miss deadlines, or fail to implement a project because their focus is elsewhere. Many working managers feel forced to shoehorn supporting their team around their individual assignment obligations. And if they're incentivized for successful implementation rather than developing their team, it impacts them financially when they put the team's needs ahead of their own deliverables.
Related: How the Culture of Overwork Is Damaging Your Productivity and Your Health
Problem 2: Never available
Employees often feel neglected and unsupported by working managers, who are usually overwhelmed with their own projects. Working managers are also usually less open to new ideas brought forth from employees because they're focused on efficiency due to their massive workload.
Working managers often have a lack of trust from the teams they manage. To employees, these managers may be highly experienced and knowledgeable, but they're not really in charge, not reliable as authorities and ineffective as advocates due to lack of perceived credibility or status.
Problem 3: Burnout
While it might seem efficient to have a working manager serve in multiple roles, the fact of the matter is this increased workload accelerates manager burnout. Many working managers attempt to cover the spread by spending time managing their team during the workday and turning around to work through the evening to tackle their individual projects and initiatives.
Not only unsustainable, this massive overworking also reduces the overall effectiveness of the manager and the team. Stress permeates, often manifesting as something as simple as increased sick days taken to a revolving door of managers for the team. This lack of stability doesn't bode well for sustaining organizational growth, much less a healthy company culture.
Since leadership often considers working managers as secondary leaders, they're also not given much training, development or mentoring. They usually have less credibility when they raise a problem, ask for resources or propose new approaches to business challenges. Because they are fully occupied by their daily tasks, they feel the impact of this dismissal and often relegate themselves to tasks rather than serving in the role of a true manager.
Related: 3 Ways to Help Employees Combat Burnout and Create More Balance
Solve the problem by shifting mindsets
We can't continue to live under the guise that working managers are more effective and connect better with their teams, because they have little to no time to support their teams. If there's a bad or lazy manager, get rid of them. Rewarding great managers with more work than they can handle doesn't benefit the manager or the team.
In addition, reliance on working managers actually covers up what's really an understaffing problem. The organization may actually need more personnel, but since the working manager fills the gap, true staffing needs are overlooked.
If your organization relies on working managers, try a mindset shift: if you didn't have the multi-function managers you have today, what kind of resources would you need to hire to fill the gap? What skills and capabilities would you need in those new resources? Are there any recurring problems that might be alleviated if specific roles were separated out?
In addition, review your current resource needs against any growth you project. If you were to address future needs now, how many people would you have to hire and train? Would that number justify the need for a full-time manager? If so, how would you define a successful and productive managerial role? What skills would you expect from an outsider in that position? Once you've considered these factors, start thinking about whether you have candidates that are suited to the new scenario. Who could grow into full-time management roles in a year or two? Envision an organizational structure that allows the growth you want for both the business and individuals, and then make plans to make it a reality.
Managing people is work but working managers do much more. Working managers are often assigned to some sort of business function, highlighting an additional scope of responsibility. When we talk about management, we're often describing more supervisory tasks than actual management. Coordinating time off and scheduling one-on-ones is the bare minimum necessary to be considered management. When we have this mindset about what management is, working managers get an exhaustive list of responsibilities to fill the gap. But this is because of our misperception of what management is, which lowers our standards and increases their duties. Instead of having working managers, let's consider what we can do to make managers better at what they're supposed to do — managing their teams.
