Employee Gossip - Top Traits of Annoying Bosses

It’s Wednesday.

Margaritas are two for one, and a fresh batch of chips and salsa was just delivered to the table, but nothing is hotter than the tea being exchanged between disgruntled coworkers.

Who needs team-building exercises when nothing unites people more than talking about their annoying managers?

At least, that’s what our latest survey, Top Traits of Annoying Managers, says:

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What do employees gossip about?

Don’t worry, your team isn’t gossiping about the questionable outfit you wore last week or that one thing you said in a meeting that will probably get you canceled on social media (though maybe it was brought up). They’re too busy exchanging grievances over the fact that their manager just doesn’t understand and makes a 9-5 workday feel eternal.

The 1,500+ professionals who answered our survey stated that the three most annoying behaviors their managers display are:

1. Ignoring or dismissing the team’s suggestions for improvement.
2. Dumping their work on others without considering what they already have to do and that they aren’t getting paid to do a manager’s job.
3. Overloading the team with unrealistic workloads and deadlines.

Some other irritating manners colleagues are likely discussing over a drink are how their manager shows favoritism, takes credit for someone else’s work, displays a lack of trust towards the team and micromanages.

Interestingly enough, some of the people who answered our survey said they have tried to bring these issues up with their managers, but nothing has been resolved.

What traits do the gossipers find to be the worst offenders?

As if the findings mentioned above aren’t enough, our little birdies told us that the following are some of the most annoying boss behaviors their managers display:

What now?

Most employees don’t leave a job, they leave bad managers. 82% of the people who answered our survey reported that their manager’s annoying behaviors hurt the team’s morale.

It’s no wonder that 74% of these professionals have considered leaving their team or job due to management, especially when their desire for change and a better work environment goes unheard.

Because as nice as it feels to vent out frustrations with a coworker, eventually, not even a frozen strawberry margarita will get rid of the sour taste that having an annoying manager leaves behind.

Managers have a responsibility to create a workplace where their team members feel welcomed, appreciated and considered. Out of the professionals who took their time to answer our questions, more than 78% reported that their manager has been displaying a proactive attitude to change these behaviors. Small steps to improve as a leader go a long way in showing the people in your team that you care enough about their feedback to better your management style and create a positive workplace for everyone.

There might be many things you can’t control about the company itself, but you can take care of your team and ensure that they, at least, have nothing but good things to say about you over chips and salsa.