Why We Don't "Micromanage" Employees at Amana Capital.

Micromanaging is the practice of overseeing what others are doing with strict control. In business, entrepreneurs and leaders generally view it negatively. This perception is well warranted.You’ll kill morale.Most workers want to be given a shot at least to try to finish a task or come up with a solution. They want to show what they can do and to earn the respect of both their coworkers and members of management. Micromanaging, however,sends the message that you don’t trust your employees to do their job well on their own. You communicate that you think the only capable one in the office is you. Employees can feel disrespected and less confident because of your attitude, and over time, their feelings can lead to higher late, sick and turnover rates.Productivity can nosedive.Micromanaging means that you don’t allow your employees to cross over into true independence. They have to come to you or get approval for just about everything, so it often takes longer to get anything finished. The distraction that comes from you continuously watching them also can slow everything down or result in a greater number of errors. Additionally, the message of incompetence you send can make employees afraid to push forward and try new ideas.You’ll burn out.Watching everything like a hawk might get things done just the way you want, but this “perfection” comes at a price. Most micro-managers end up physically and mentally exhausted from trying to solve so many problems, coordinate so many people and keep track of an endless stream of details. If you don’t take time to recoup, it becomes harder and harder to sort through information and make good decisions, and you end up being less dependable to the company.Your employees cannot grow.Employees develop skills and acquire knowledge through personal experience–that is, they have to take action for themselves in order for learning to take place. When you micromanage, you take away the opportunity  for them to practice or get the information they need, so they never broaden what they know or get much better at what you need them to do. The lack of growth means that employees can feel stifled or trapped in their careers, and sometimes, this feeling of confinement leads to workers jumping ship to take opportunities with your competitors. Furthermore, by not letting the workers thrive, you never truly prepare anyone else for upper-level positions, leaving the company less stable.You get a poor picture of your workforce.When you do most of what’s expected in an office, you don’t see what your workers are capable of or know. Subsequently, you can’t see who would be a good fit for teams or projects as easily. It’s also harder to see who is and is not pulling their weight. Perhaps even more distressing, you don’t know how far you can take the company because you never really know what the employees are capable of delivering. Planning becomes extremely difficult under these circumstances, as does creating a clear vision that will both inspire and motivate the individuals you oversee.You create an us-versus-them environment.Make no mistake about it: When people are micromanaged, if they don’t feel comfortable telling you to stop, they’ll eventually vent to each other. Feeling like comrades in abuse, your workers can start banding together against you. If you’re lucky, they simply might be annoyed with you and gossip a bit at your expense, tired of constantly being asked if they’re done or how things are going. If you’re not so fortunate, employees can start to harbor true resentment and anger and might subconsciously or consciously discredit everything you say or do. You’ll have to fight harder just to get your workers to follow you.ConclusionMicromanaging is rarely good for a business. It has a negative influence on morale, is divisive, prevents you from seeing your workforce accurately, increases the risk of turnover, stifles growth and productivity and leaves you exhausted. For these reasons, I recommend that you don’t do it unless you have a very good reason, such as a crisis in a department (company) where a mistake could highly affect the business.