June 07, 2003

More Dysfunctional Organizational Behaviors.

Yes, there are more. I keep being reminded of them by various tales of woe...

Over A Chief-ment
This is when there are too many bosses, and not enough workers. People end up at the end of these long chains of reporting, and often end up answering to multiple supervisors, managers, etc. Usually this is the result of a poorly (and politically) chosen layoff. The brass lets only the worker bees go, and then expects the ones remaining to do the same work, for multiple bosses. If your employer is too top heavy with do nothing managers, you should look to leave, before you end up burned by conflicting demands.

Panic Mode
Everything gets done at the last minute. People who try to be forward thinking get shot down, or reprimanded for not "paying attention to the task at hand". Things are done on verbal authority, with conflicting requirements, and the person who did them is blamed if it isn't what the requestor later decides s/he really wanted. People end up constantly juggling priorities based on what's "urgent" at the moment, and end up putting in long days before a deadline to implement some new, suddenly added (or "forgotten") requirement. If you work in this environment, document everything, no matter how much they whine. A composition book works.

There will be more to come, I'm sure.

Posted by ljl at June 7, 2003 02:27 PM | TrackBack