Micromanagement is a burden for many employees, but it can be so subtle that managers confuse it with leadership. Funnily enough, micromanagement is simply a management style where a leader tries to control all the aspects of a development process even when not necessary, consequently creating issues that harm the project or the final product, all while, usually, frustrating the person they're managing. It was a popular way of doing things in the past, and even now in the present inside some teams and companies. Why? Maybe because this is an easier route, or because the people leading the teams do not know any better. Who knows? I sure wondered about this a lot, and I started researching more into the topic to see why micromanagement is still a thing in 2022.

When it comes to managing and leading software engineers and developer teams, micromanaging can seriously affect employees' productivity.

According to Eric Clayberg, a software engineering manager at Google;

"Engineers hate being micromanaged on the technical side, "... "but they love being closely managed on the career side."

A Leader is Empowering; A Micromanager Loves Power

This is probably the most obvious difference between leadership and micromanagement. A micromanager loves to exercise power for the sake of being powerful. Even if their intentions are good, they end up controlling every little aspect of the process, ultimately making employees uncomfortable. The developers and engineers feel stifled, and they don't have the space to share innovative ideas. Moreover, the employees feel like their manager does not trust them.

"They ruin the whole team autonomy by their efforts to seek control over every single thing. This can be because of lack of trust between manager and team, and that can be fixed, but unfortunately, it's often a personality trait of the manager; they simply like control—and the feeling of being in change." - Patric Palm, CEO of Hansoft and Favro.

On the other hand, a leader is empowering. They know their role as a manager has put them in a place where they must use authority to drive results and encourage creativity. They understand when to use a firmer form of control and how to do this acceptably and fairly. They also intrinsically understand the nature of software development and how important it is for everyone to have a say in the development process. Although leaders will make final decisions by weighing all the ideas and suggestions, they're also happy to hear feedback from their team and adapt to changing needs.

This is backed by plenty of research looking at many different disciplines and job roles; according to Google's in-depth manager research and guidance, effective managers empower their teams instead of micromanaging them. Weekly or monthly meetings that denote tasks and deadlines should be a key part of the agenda, this makes sure team members are part of the decision-making process, rather than being handed tasks without the opportunity to clarify or ask questions.

Many excellent tools for managing teams remotely are available, but some of the best are the likes of Trello and Asana. Both of these allow for easy and effective project management and the ability to enable individual users to different levels of access, whether that's read-only or the ability to edit and update the project goals or actions. Within these project management tools, you can include daily updates and deadlines - ensuring your team always knows what's going on and what's required of them, allowing them a further opportunity to ask if they need more information, rather than managers running the risk of micromanaging their team.

My Micromanagement Story and Learnings

I remember a job I had earlier in my career, where I had a project manager who was really on my back about deliverables and made it really uncomfortable for me. Little did I know that this was going to be a big learning experience in what micromanaging is all about!

After a few days of getting irritated by the constant requests for updates from the PM, I started to think about what it was that she wanted from me. It really was her desire to know what was being worked on, how it was progressing, and when I would have something to show the team. So…I started to share A LOT of updates throughout the day, anticipating her requests for information before she asked. It started to work, at first with a bit of surprise on her end,  and then eventually with happiness. After a few more days of this mode of operating, she started to ask me to back off with my updates and realized that things were progressing well and the task was on track.

In summary, what I learned was the need for micromanaging is a 2-way street. Sometimes it is the person being managed not sharing enough, sometimes it is the manager not having the level of trust with the person. My big takeaways are:

• It takes time to build trust within a team and needs to build, in the early stage, be clear with expectations and share what is being worked on. Help trust build.
• Over-communicating is ok - why not share updates with your manager or the team before you are asked how things are going?
• When someone is micromanaging, try and understand why, don't take it personally, get to the root and move on.

A Leader is Patient, A Micromanager Rushes

A micromanager's handbook tells him to use ASAP at the end of every sentence, and he wants every project completed yesterday. To him, it might seem like staying on top of things and keeping his team on its feet. It might seem like " leadership " even to teams used to such management styles. But that couldn't be farther from the truth. Such a manager finds it hard to prioritize things and doesn't factor in the time required to do the job efficiently.

Furthermore, this type of manager usually gives vague information about the task and routinely disrupts the concentration of developers by asking them to work on other "high-priority" tasks. These practices stretch the engineers in all directions, ultimately leading to burnout and, in worst cases, employees quitting.

In contrast, a leader is not haphazard or careless when prioritizing tasks. They will categorize every step of the project by importance and know the time it would take the team to complete it while maintaining peak performance.

A leader is patient with employees and communicates with clients all the project's finer details, including accurate timescales. This protects them and their team from any rushed changes or new requirements. Such a manager strives to create an environment for the team where they can give their best. For example; it’s a good idea to decide the priorities for the project at the beginning and have a meeting with your team where you clearly state goals and deadlines, this way they are aware of all project requirements from the get-go.

It is well known that both Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook and Sundar Pichai of Google/Alphabet follow a hands-off approach and intervene only when it is absolutely necessary.

A Micromanager Knows Everything; A Leader Knows His Limitations

A less pleasant attribute of the common micromanager is a tendency to be a "know-it-all'. Their team will likely find it hard to reason with them, tell them why they might be wrong, and how it might affect the results. The micromanager always knows best and will be resistant to change.

In such an environment, decisions are made from the top down. Sooner or later, such an organization will begin to fall behind competitors due to change resistance or simply lack of talented programmers because these people would instead work for a company known for having better management.

In an interview for InfoWorld, Bill Treasurer, CEO of Giant Leap Consulting, has this to say about the know-it-all micromanagers:

"[They] always presume that they know more than their programmers. They're overconfident, over dominant types who want it done their way, even if their way is wrong. Reasoning with them is not impossible, but definitely hard because they're mostly unreasonable."

A leader behaves differently when told they might be wrong. They know that they can manage and lead and not be an expert on everything. They understand that there are people with specialized skills and knowledge in the team and listen to them when they think the team might be headed in the wrong direction. They will then analyze the suggestions based on facts and alter the direction accordingly. The team also respects such a manager.

Leadership is Competent; Micromanagement is Not

A true leader knows the importance of leading by example. If they notice flaws in the team structure, they ensure that this isn't because of management before correcting employees. This type of leader is a competent professional who knows what they're doing. Moreover, they will give actionable guidance and helpful feedback when correcting the team. They encourage the team to learn and improve instead of making them feel bad about making mistakes. Consequently, employees work in an environment where they are always learning and getting better, which is good for both the organization and the individual.

"I think great leaders are people who are trustworthy. You have to be worthy of being followed. And you have to be able to be trusted. This comes from two things — competence and connection. You need both. You can't be incompetent and be a leader. No one is going to follow someone who doesn't know what they're doing. So, you have to have the competence to do your job." - David Pottruck, Executive Chairman at Grovara.

This toxic workplace culture doesn't just exist in a physical workplace, but remote teams also encounter these problems. Unlike the leader, a micromanager is not competent enough to provide a tangible solution. They will constantly undermine other employees' expertise and always find something to complain about. They compensate for it by laying blame and calling it a day. This attitude puts the team on the defensive and creates a culture where it is just about getting the job done and leaving as soon as the day's over.

Healthy work culture focuses on work/life balance as well as offering team members ways to improve themselves both professionally and personally. Many companies are now offering wellness stipends for employees to spend on mental health improvement or wellness products and services such as massages. Not only does this promote a positive workplace it has the effect of improving employees' well-being and encouraging a healthy attitude to balance work and life.

Final Thoughts

Micromanaging can sometimes seem like leadership to managers, CTOs, and VPs of engineering. However, there's a subtle line between exercising authority and imposing control for reasons that are not always clear or interfering in an employee's work when there's no actual need for it. It's also important to note that some creative license helps differentiate average developers from the best in creative disciplines such as software engineering. This principle applies to all the other areas of leadership as well.

Learning the differences between micromanagement and leadership is crucial to encourage creative, innovative, and high-quality outcomes and that individuals hold on to the passion and enjoyment they feel when first joining a company.