Like a Boss; the good, bad, and ugly truths…
Over our career lifetime, most of us will experience a number of varying management styles. Some we work well with and some, let’s just say, we don’t.
Here’s our (tongue-in-cheek) look at some of the ‘boss’ stereotypes we’ve met along the way to our career happiness, The good, bad and ugly management styles encountered when working in recruitment. Which ones do you recognise? Who’ve you had the pleasure (or misfortune) of working for? We don’t want you to name and shame but we do hope (office banter aside) that this will somehow resonate with a few that should perhaps, change their ways.
Big Brother. We’ve heard real-life horror stories of CCTV in the office, paranoia overload, office spies (employed to check your emails) and companies that immediately require all passwords for all forms of social media you’ve ever been on, yep Bebo and MySpace included! ‘What do you mean you’re friends with Tom? Who does Tom work for? Big Brother Boss is in a league of their own (mainly because most people are too scared to be alone with them) BB Boss takes no prisoners, it’s their way or the highway. They know you’ve done something ‘wrong’ even before you do! They have an army of willing Minions (let’s call them the golden snitches) who seem employed for the soul reason of snitching, spying and shadowing every move you and your co-workers make. So, if life as a Minion ‘yes-man’ doesn’t appeal to you, it may be time to look for a healthier working environment, after all, golden snitches are best left on the Quidditch pitch.
Dickie Branson puts their staff at the forefront of all they do, people genuinely love to work for them. This boss is full of energy (the non-caffeine induced kind we all dream of having first thing on Monday) a real leader with a passion for doing things differently. They stand out for their high-octane lust for life and they’re definitely not afraid to muck in and get their hands dirty. Loves an out-of-office team building experience day, usually something a little off-piste. If we can say anything bad about this boss, it would be that sometimes, we just struggle to keep up.
The freshman, this boss looks like they’re barely out of college and wearing their dad’s suit. Only this suit is a designer, sprayed with half a bottle of One Million and matches every accessory they own, from their Paul Smith shoes to their man-bag and belt. The Freshman boss is fresh out of the box, energetic and brimming with ideas. Don’t let their age and experience (or lack of) fool you, they know what they’re doing and they’re there to get the job done. Failure is not an option to this boss. This is a stepping stone onto bigger things so they don’t appreciate being patronized by longer-serving staff. Keep in this boss’s good books, they’re going places… Just don’t ask them if their mum picked out their tie.
The one with all the T-shirts, if we’ve heard the phrase ‘in my day’ or ‘when I used to work for…’ once we’ve heard it a thousand times. TOWATT Boss loves the sound of their own voice, especially when they’re regaling the office with tails of just how well they did your job once, many moons ago and how nothing much has changed in the industry (yeah, right) so what’s your problem…? Now, this boss can be a bit Marmite, and there’s definitely two types here. There’s the harmless, experienced boss who likes to feel they’re passing down their pearls of wisdom to the younger generation. Then there are the ones who (‘this one time and band camp…’) can’t see any way but their way. Similarly, to Big Brother Boss, this boss is stubborn and likes to keep a vice-like grip on things (sometimes chokingly so).
The David Brent, you know the one, from their catchphrases to their overly familiar matey-nature. The David Brent boss can be both a giggle and a hindrance to your work day. Known for their ‘banter’ (be it funny to all or just them) and their somewhat inappropriate humour, they’re not quite first in mind when someone says ‘inspirational’ but they do have a great team spirit and they’re always first to make a song and dance (oh god not that dance…) when someone lands that big deal.
Let us know if we’ve missed any or the types you’ve met along the way. The good, bad and ugly of working for management in recruitment. We’d love to hear from you and what you think makes a great ‘boss’ (remember, no naming and shaming please).
Steph.