Leadership Viewpoint

Most of us have worked for people who have control issues. This is the person who supposedly assigns responsibility for a task, and then is constantly ‘butting in’ to the leader’s efforts as the job progresses. Assuming that the person who has been put in charge of the project or task is competent, some of the behavioral differences between ‘oversight’ and ‘controlling’ include:

Oversight
Regularly scheduled checkpoints and milestones
Controlling
Popping in uninvited and asking specific questions

Oversight
Asking if there is an area where assistance is needed
Controlling
Initiating assistance where none has been requested

Oversight
Referring routine questions to the person assigned the responsibility
Controlling
Answering questions about the project personally

Oversight
Guiding the project leader through any emergencies
Controlling
Taking over to ensure success in an emergency

Oversight
Setting communication and progress norms with the project leader
Controlling
Calling/emailing and requesting information ad hoc out of curiosity

If you have an assignment where the senior person is exhibiting the ‘controlling’ behaviors, it is incumbent on you to formally initiate an agreement on a better way forward. It is fair and reasonable to let others know how you like to be managed and how to obtain your best performance.

If you see yourself in any of these controlling behaviors, don’t be surprised if you find that one of the following occurs:

1. Tension and avoidance from the person to whom you gave the assignment
2. Lack of initiative from the person to whom you gave the assignment

Competent people naturally want to have room to operate as they see fit. Cramping their style and ‘butting in’ causes stress, and is often noted as a contributing factor to turnover in exit interviews. To avoid this situation, establish and stick to an oversight plan that will provide you with adequate timely information to be supportive (and manage up) without taking over or ‘butting in’. Understand too that this is more art than science. As such, ask the project leader how he or she would prefer to be managed. Each person is different, so try to accommodate that and you’ll go a long way toward successful oversight.

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