The 27 Challenges Managers Face

Conquering “Undermanagement”

Poor management often stems from undermanagement, a direct result of inefficient and ineffective communication. Undermanagers’ conversations with their subordinates are either too unplanned and spontaneous or conducted too rigidly and by the book. These managers engage in structured conversations with their staff members only during formal performance reviews. Many employees resent those conversations, which often seem forced and artificial.

Undermanagers typically ask their employees: “How are you?” “How’s everything going?” “Is everything on track?” “Are there any problems I should know about?” These feeble attempts at conversation accomplish little. Instead of managing, undermanagers often end up spending their time trying to put out fires.

Managing isn’t easy. Technology makes the human interplay at work increasingly complex. Other challenges arise from employees’ growing interdependency and the faster pace of work. Change is an unsettling constant. Companies demand constant high productivity from their employees. These factors add to managerial pressures, particularly given constraints on resources. Most employees no longer feel...