The rightful way to make an employee unhappy

Management is a difficult art, management in big corporations is more difficult. Management in a corporation where the multicultural requirement is a need is even harder.

We all know it and, to a certain extent, we have to deal with it. We can’t expect everything works well and right, and we have to show flexibility and we have to be open to change and embrace the new but…

Let’s be real, no matter how much effort you put sometimes things are just not right.

When the environment is too toxic probably is better to leave than hoping for a change.

There are plenty of ways a toxic company environment can make your life miserable, and usually, they try to use them all.

Sometimes the toxic environment is so strong that even the best manager has to comply with disgraceful attitudes (or leave).

But what is the sign of a toxic environment? the first sign is you do not stand it anymore. Sometimes is not a single event, but a set of rules that combined together with a bad management attitude make the mix toxic.

Let’s do some examples of rules and managers that can turn your working life into a nightmare.

Micromanagement

This is a common nightmare. The manager want to check every single detail. Not in a helpful proactive way, but in a compulsory need to not give delegation or autonomy to the people.

Usually, micromanagement comes with an exaggerated manager ego (I am not right because I’m right, I am right because I am the Boss) and a fundamental mistrust of the other people.

Quite a sociopathic attitude? Not really is more common than we should expect. It happens that people promoted to a management position changes their attitude and adhere to this model.

Usually, the micromanager is also extremely rude and impolite, the kind of guy that calls you at 10 pm shouting if you do not answer immediately. You do not have the right to your personal life, your life should be built around your manager.

And, of course, the micromanager value your time in a different way, so no matter if you reach your goal, the important thing for the micromanager are:

do it his-her way
time, the more you stay at office the better (so it can control more?)

The point is if you are looking for a life balance, with this kind of manager the only way is to rule out your brain from your work, and just act like a robot. But I can assure you he-she will shout anyway

Yes Man

Do you know those managers that follow blindly company rules? Even the most stupid one? Have you ever worked in that environment?

This situation usually comes together with denial. Evidence does not touch the manager that will always find a good reason to justify company strategy. When they talk it seems that everyone (except you) is working in a fairyland where everyone helps, communication is perfect, the company treats employees like sons or daughters, and all are working for the greater good.

Of course, you that object that the reality is different are the point of failure of this model. If problems arise they have to be hidden or the blame has to be given to someone in a lower hierarchical status.

No roads no direction

Another typical thing that makes people unhappy is not to see directions, again a trait of many managers. Every change is allowed and you can’t see a strategy or purpose. Hard to be committed when you can’t see a good reason to do it. But every change has a reason, and if you do not cope is you that are resistant to change. So again you’re the problem.

KPI or how to make clear you will never reach them

KPI (Key Performance Index) is another great instrument of torture if used well (and they know how to use it). Basically the idea is to put them at a non-reachable level, but in a way the fault is your one.

KPI is not necessarily a just a sales target which, by definition, is unreachable, but a complex set of manure used to drive you mad. The more your job is based on intellectual stuff the better will be your KPI used as a metric from someone that probably has no idea what your work actually is. But in the end, we are all replaceable, and so your work is not so important.

KPI is a fine agreement between two evil entities, your management hierarchy, and HR department. HR apparently usually put a lot of effort in designing non-understandable systems that seemed to used to target the employee to lower his-her satisfaction, self-esteem, professionalism, and commitment.

Those little financial rules

CFO and financial office are other pieces of the puzzle. There are plenty of rules that can drive you mad.

The complicated procedures to make an expenses refund request are usually a good indicator, the more complex the more easily you get frustrated.

But there are those little rules that really piss you off:

Some companies do not allow you to take Mileage gained with flight, since the company pays those miles are of the company…

this would be even correct if the company would demonstrate the same attention to the employee need, but usually, this is just one little drop in a “cut expenses beyond ridiculousness”

Some companies put rules on your laundry, the craziest? You can claim laundry for everything but underwear (it is real, it is real, I can prove it)…
Some companies have a certain discretionary ability to move expenses from what is personal expenses to what is business-related according to the mood of the moment.

it is quite a common understanding that you have to advance a certain amount of money, which will be repaid accordingly to the company process. Pity this process usually takes a long time, and the more you have had to advance (bigger expenses claim) the more you have to wait.

Of course the fact you are not traveling for your happiness and pleasure but for the job does not come to the mind of the CFO that is probably sat in the office, and when on the move takes a first-class flight and can claim every expense.

Cars and other allowance

Ok, you give me something for work that is also a benefit. Benefit means it is part of my income. So why sometimes this benefit turns out a mere cost since you can not use it for non-working activities (or the constrain are so hight you simply don’t do it)?

From not allowing your husband-wife to drive, or not covering with insurance in the non-working trips there are a lot of ways to make a benefit non-usable.

Of course, the best way is not to give it to you at all with some good reason, but better not complain, all have to do some sacrifice for the company you should try to understand.

The phone is another wonderful thing that can slightly make you uncomfortable, mostly if you are an international traveler. Policy on phones can vary from company to company. some simply do not care (up to you), others provide sim but not phone (but then require you to install any kind of crap on your personal device, it is called BYOD). A classic is to pretend you do not use the phone for personal reasons (calling family) even if you are on a business trip, at the end you live for work not for your beloved. And of course, roaming is out of the question in most of the case.

Sacrifice and culture

we should all do something for the company.

It hurts me but …

a little sacrifice is mandatory

All nice statements if the company would pay it back with the same coin, but usually, those requirements are mono-directional, from management to you.

Is like when a CEO asks for an important layout and then got a mega bonus, sacrifice hurts mostly if it seems that you and your peers are the only ones who are required to pay a price.

In some culture, the idea of sacrifice is embedded, but here the aim is to leverage the idea the lower hierarchy has to do the extra job (hours, activities) because is the right thing to do.

Does the contract that ties the relationship between employers and employees state what an employee is paid for? Or is it just a useless piece of paper?

If sacrifice can be understandable in exceptional situations, can’t be the rule.

Same with culture. Embracing a new culture is a bidirectional activity, you can’t ask to understand a new culture if you close yourself. There are companies that besides the claiming to be “international” are in reality completely closed to the other work culture. A typical example is the HR manager that does not even speak the local language.

Flexibility

For some strange reason, flexibility is a thing that tends to decrease with the hierarchy. The more you go up the less flexibility is required. So the lower level has to adapt and cope and be flexible.

But curiously when is the employee that asks in exchange a little flexibility this is denied. So is good to ask you to work on Saturday without pay, but don’t dare to ask a day or some hours to go to a funeral (I’ve seen this as well, alas).

Trust

Trust is a bidirectional thing, you can’t trust someone who does not trust you. To some extent it can be understandable that the company takes precautions but it can’t, at the same time, think you have to trust back. If you feel you’re not trusted you will not trust them, as simply as at. I know trusting company decision-makers is hard, but bad managers and HR usually are in the Top Chart.

So Do not ask me if I’m sending CV away, I do not trust you will understand.

… and so on

Every one of those aspects, per se, can be managed, but usually, they come all together (or at least most of them), because they are all sign of a bad management attitude in the company. While good managers can mitigate this, in a toxic environment the pain is usually exacerbated by bad managers that add their incompetence to the company environment.