7 Tell-Tale Signs of Leadership Mismanagement

Business managers are constantly asked to assess if employees are performing to expectations. If employees are not, managers must take steps to remedy the situation.

But what happens if lousy management is to blame for underperformance?

 There are obvious signs that a company is on the wrong management track, such as declining sales and revenue, the loss of major customers and, with public companies, a falling stock price. Yet some red flags go unnoticed. Whether the warning signs are apparent or not, directly and aggressively addressing them is the way out of company mismanagement.

 Check for these 7 tell-tale signs of leadership mismanagement:

 Negative Feedback From Customers

The most important stakeholder in any business is the customer. Disgruntled customers will find a way to complain, negative feedback is inevitable. Nonetheless, when the negative feedback is on an upward trend, you are bound to lose business. If you are unable to deliver improvements and address those concerns, this can be detrimental to the reputation and business over time.

Management should identify those improvements or make strategic moves to improve your business processes and customer satisfaction.

 Micromanagement and Excessive Oversight

Micromanaging is when a supervisor not only examines but also nitpicks everything, from the tiniest tasks to day-to-day procedures. A manager who micromanages might stand over employees’ shoulders as they work. Employees are regarded employees as cogs in a machine instead of as members of a team who share a common goal – to get the job done.

Positive recognition and appreciation go much further than micromanagement, which results in a lack of trust. People work best when managers trust them.

Stubbornness and Unwillingness to Listen and Adapt

A manager who is unwilling to listen to feedback and adapt to change isn't a manager who will lead a thriving team. A willingness to evolve has always been important for business – especially now, because technology moves forward faster than ever before. Managers need to listen to employees’ suggestions and to be honest about where the company needs to go. When managers have too much pride to listen to their employees, then the business will lack innovation, and the business will suffer financially, as innovation is the only way to move forward.

The Management Team is in Denial.

When managers pretend a business is doing fine when it's not, that's a problem. It's important to ensure issues are addressed and solved rather than playing Pollyanna and ignoring the realities of business trends. This has a huge impact on a public company if a management team is ignoring major issues presented by investors and continues to underperform. Not only will near-term company financials suffer, but an unrealistic management team can cause long-term damage to reputation and trust.

New Ideas are Dismissed.

When employees' ideas and suggestions are ignored, it could be signs of a complacent and unsupportive team. This could lead to stagnation in growth potential, especially if management is saying, 'This is the way we've always done it.' Any company, organization or manager that defaults to the past as gospel will get hurt in the long run. You'll miss key changes in trends and lose out on new opportunities.

Instead, promote project innovation and new ideas. Set up a team focused on this initiative. Encourage open dialogue across the organization, and reward staff for new ideas. A company that does not do this could lose talented people who feel their value isn't appreciated.

Employees are Fleeing.

One big sign of company mismanagement is low retention. Employees will occasionally quit even a well-managed company, but if a company has difficulty keeping a full staff and is constantly hiring, that's a sign there's a problem. High employee turnover puts a massive drain on your internal resources. First, there's the monetary cost of searching for, hiring and training new employees. Inexperienced staff is also less efficient and more likely to make mistakes, so your overall productivity drops if you're constantly needing to fill holes in the team roster.

Your company culture isn’t a one-and-done deal. Even after you address these 7 signs of bad culture (mismanagement), you should routinely check in on your organizational culture and see what improvements can be made. You can gauge the strength of your company culture by measuring employee engagement and regularly asking your team for feedback. Remember that your hard work will pay off in the long run, so don’t shirk your company culture responsibilities.