Help! I'm Being Micromanaged!

As an employee, I was hired because I was the best candidate for the position. I have excelled and was given excellent reviews, horrible raises, due to economy. But hey my boss drives in with a brand new bmw 2010 totally loaded, huh, Im struggling financially and let them know, (I did this in a calm professional manner) since I have said this, I feel I am a value to the company and management and would like them to consider raise. Now since I work for a small company with no HR and lots of gossip, by management I am now written up as insubordinate and if I request any future earnings from the company I will be terminated. Im in customer service have been for 30 years. My calls, computer every keystroke is now watched and monitored. I think this is what people are talking about. Not managers that need to prod people on or hands on, love those kind of managers as they are always available to thier employee's. What I dont like are a little gang of managers that think they can run roughshod over employee's and get away with making the employee's life a living hell. Work is stressfull enough without being micromanaged by managers that should not be in managing positions as they are abusing their authority. The only person who comes out the loser in these situations is the employee.

Bob of CA 10:25AM July 29, 2011

Excellent article. I hate micromanaging but I have had some employees who simply don't manage themselves. The work has to get done and they won't or can't organize their time and priorities. My boss holds me accountable when the department isn't effective, so I'll do whatever I have to, even if it means micromanaging. It feels like infantalizing to me, but if someone treats their workplace like their living room or personal playground, then that might be appropriate. I would much much much prefer to take a hands-off approach. But some people can't handle that, while others thrive on it. I have had repeated conversations, write-ups and semi-counseling sessions with people who can't straighten up for more than a couple of weeks, yet I can't fire them due to constraints in the organization. I have experienced adults who play video games every time I turn my back or take a day off, hold long conversations on the phone while ignoring customers, consistently miss deadlines, and turn the department into a laughingstock. At my last position I was sent to the most underperforming unit in order to turn it around and I got tired of the insubordination and grief these grown children gave me. I left and never looked back.

AE of IN 5:38PM April 29, 2011

I have a co-worker who is micromanaging me. Her power is derived from "owning" the documentation I was hired to help her with. Rather than just giving me assignments (I am extensively experienced in the tools we use), she has to connect to my computer, and then tell me step-by-step what to click to do a certain activity. I become flustered and confused working this way. On the latest occasion, she instructed me to do something in a way that did not work at all. She never asks me when this kind of activity is convenient for me; she merely announces when we are going to do it, whether I want to do it then, or have other things I'm doing, or not. When I give my status in team meetings, she either scolds me during the meeting or sends an instant message immediately to chastise me. As I said, this person has no supervisory authority over me, but she constantly goes to the manager to complain about "interpersonal" problems with me. I am beginning to feel besieged. Now she is saying that I am not to work on the documentation at all, and explaining to the boss the timing is not appropriate. When I try to explain to her that I need more space, that I am competent, she complains to the manager that we have "interpersonal" problems.

I need this job, but I am feeling so stressed and strained that I am virtually paralyzed; I am virtually afraid to do anything at all.

Miserable of NC 10:06AM April 25, 2010