Managerial Incompetence: How common is it?

[Elok]

I'm relatively new to the whole working-for-a-living thing, and I always assumed that Dilbert cartoons were comic exaggerations. However, the pizza place I've been stuck at is going under fast, and I think a good 50% of the blame, at the very least, can be laid at the feet of our regional-manager types. I doubt you all want to hear my litany of beefs with my retarded bosses, but in brief, they picked a lousy concept for the area, have little understanding of how the restaurant operates on a daily basis, and mistake obsessive, suffocating micromanagement for responsibility.

Is this a constant? Assuming I manage to escape from the Pizza Shop Titanic, will I have to deal with middle-management undermining my work wherever I go? Or is it confined to certain industries, such as foodservice? I'm assuming they can't all be as bad as our stooges, or there wouldn't be a functioning restaurant on earth, but they could all be interfering goofs to a lesser degree.

[David Floyd]

While you have something of a point, I can also tell you that lazy, unmotivated, and probably pot-smoking staff causes just as many, if not more problems, than "upper management".

In other words, it's easy to ***** and moan about how the business is failing because management sucks. It's quite a different thing to put yourself out there and offer constructive solutions, and try to change things.

[loinburger]

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[Elok]

Eh, the best shift-manager we ever had was a recreational pot user. He wanted us to unleash the fire-hammer with a vengeance, put a bunch of people out on their asses and fire the replacements too if they didn't hit the ground running. They fired him because they couldn't afford to pay him. Meanwhile, the manager who's known to have traded free food for personal favors (and who exposed the company to lawsuit by making a girl work on a broken leg despite doctor's and store manager's orders) is still going strong. Bad staff is a problem, but if it doesn't vanish quickly enough it's just another case of bad management.

[SlowwHand]

Peter Principle

[Kuciwalker]

not insignificant

die

[loinburger]

"Significant" would have had the wrong connotation.

[Kuciwalker]

As a lifeguard, my "managers" weren't terrible enough to actually impede anyone's performance, and were reasonably motivating. My supervisor at Texas Instruments was excellent, because he pretty much just pointed me in a direction and left me alone for several months.

[Asher]

Managerial Incompetence: How common is it?

It is a requirement.

[Asher]

Except me. I'm awesome.

[Provost Harrison]

Don't get me started...

[ZEE]

as a 15 year veteran of retail i can say that you must go to work EXPECTING managerial failures, not daily cooperation.

I have been put into situations that today can be considered downright criminal, but just remember you are highly expendable and the moar pay you make the moar they will WANT to actually get rid of you to replace you with somebody who's dumb enough to take your job with half the pay and none of the quirks. Ive outlasted CEO's, entire "rosters" of employees including shift managers, and best of all I've built up large and loyal followings of actual CUSTOMERS... you know, the ones that pay your companies bills.

If you are flexible with your hours (meaning any day any time,) know at least 3 "departments" or separate areas of the workplace, and consistently save your bosses incompetent asses on a daily basis then you have your job on lockdown.

So if you don't think i know what im talking about just remember I beat the recession, sun.

[Japher]

I've had my share. I would say about half of my managers have been incompetent, though I've liked all but one of them well enough since their incompetence wasn't sinking the boat or causing me damage. Their stupidity mainly has served as a source of entertainment and annoyance more than anything. You need to learn to manage up, and understand that you control your own fate. Of course, if the idiots are sinking the boat there's not much you can do by keep your head up so they can serve as a reference.

The one manager I had that was an idiot was actual walked all over by his boss who loved to micromanage everyone in the department. Not only would he micromanage, but he would insult you and berate you if he found out something before you did. Also, he would go behind your back and under mind you every chance he got. The guy was an ass, but the manager should have prevented him from meddling. The director once commented on how nothing got done unless he was there. I see that comment as a reflection of his poor management.

[Elok]

Money goes missing from the till; the big bosses decide that from now on, only managers are allowed to run the register. Because, you know, people always steal from the registers when all their coworkers are around.

Actual result: management is stuck behind the register during a lunch or dinner rush while the new people are drowning on the line, burning things in the oven, etc. Brilliant thinking, middle management!

[loinburger]

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