Micromanaging Behaviour and Employee Productivity in SMEs in Rivers State

Abstract

Companies are always needing an individual to lead/manage its employees. However, some managers have been known to want to direct and control every move/task performed by their subordinates (known as micromanagement), which creates a sense of insecurity and disengagement among the employees. Employee morale and employee turnover were adopted as measures of productivity in this study. A critical review of extant literature revealed a nexus between micromanaging behaviour and employee productivity. Micromanagement, it was found, is not all negative; under certain instances and settings, it can be beneficial. It can be advantageous to a company if it is done correctly. Accordingly, managers must be aware of their employees’ performance and attitudes, but this must be done in a non-critical manner. Furthermore, it was recommended that entrepreneurs ought to: refrain from meddling in the middle of their employees’ work by assigning tasks based on their employees’ strong suits; trust their team; consider what knowledge and resources an employee would require to do delegated duties on their own, and instead of completing the job for them, focus on obtaining them that information. Instead than focusing on the process itself, think about the outcomes you want to see at the end of the project. describe the assignment’s end goal and then inquire as to how your employee would approach the problem; and enable their staff to make mistakes.