Bad management and lack of communication skills are endemic

Bad management and lack of communication skills are endemic in the UK workplace

Poor communication, lack of direction and weak decision making are widespread among UK bosses, a report has maintained.

Nine out of ten employees say they’ve worked for a bad manager and an astonishing 97% say they would like their bosses to communicate more clearly and directly. More specifically, employees say that management-speak is a major cause of irritation, with phrases such as “are we all singing from the same hymn sheet” and “thinking out of the box” among the chief culprits.
Lack of management clarity
Law firm Eversheds canvassed the views of 1,500 employees, 58% of whom said their manager was a poor communicator, 47.7% said their manager was a poor decision maker and 45.7% said their manager had no clear direction. Half of those questioned said they had worked for a bully.
According to David Gray, chief executive of “Eversheds, the findings clearly show that managers have got to achieve a fine balance. Workers say they respond to managers who are straight-talking and honest, but also someone who is approachable and friendly.”

He added that the report revealed a distinct lack of respect for management, with more than one-third of workers having a negative perception of their current boss. The top-three important attributes in a manager were defined as:
1. being approachable by 77.8%;
2. honesty by 74.9%;
3. and clear decision making by 71.7%.

Gender and age impacts management needs

The study also exposed a split between in opinionin both different gender and age groups: the majority of women say an approachable and friendly management style gets the most out of them, whereas men prefer to work for a manager who’s straight talking and honest. But younger workers, aged between 16 to 24 years old, believe that women are the more effective managers.

http://www.internalcommshub.com/open/news/badboss.shtml