I found this article very interesting and thought I'd share. Are there other mistakes you think leaders/bosses make?

Mistakes leaders make

By Amy Schurr, editor for Network World's Management
Strategies and Features sections.

The uncertain economy has forced leaders to keep a keen focus on
profits, though career management firm Lee Hecht Harrison says
some are making management mistakes that drag down the bottom
line.

One of your objectives as a leader is to inspire your IT
department to new heights of achievement. "If, as a leader, one
of my primary concerns is not the welfare of my team, then I'll
never know just how successful we can be," says Susan Howington,
senior vice president and manager director at Lee Hecht
Harrison. "Positive regard for your people leads to the best
customer service, the highest level of contribution by each team
member and the highest profits."

Lee Hecht Harrison identifies these other common leadership
pitfalls to avoid:

* Failure to make timely decisions: Delaying the decision-making
process can cause you to lose competitive advantage. Many
executives are fearful of taking a risk and lose important
opportunities.

* Poor people skills: Your employees are your most valuable
asset. The ability to listen, be consistent and evoke trust is
key to creating an atmosphere of commitment and pride.

* Not investing in staff: While most leaders recognize the
return on investment in maintaining IT gear and other assets,
they need to keep in mind that providing career development and
coaching opportunities reaps a big payoff too.

* Sweating the small stuff: Don't waste time on the
insignificant and trust your people to make decisions. This will
free you from putting out fires that can be handled by others.

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One thing I have personally experienced, are managers who like to 'win over' staff quickly. They will socialise with staff 'out of hours' in order to enhance their popularity, and (they think) as a consequence, this will improve staff loyalty and commitment.

My own experience of this, is that staff tend to take advantage of the boss, calling in favours, reminding them of extra-curricular activities, etc. So I would therefore say it can be dangerous for the gap between middle-management and operations staff to be eroded. The manager should be approachable... but not necessarily "one of the gang".

Paul

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Yes, sir!
Good point, paulhiles. It is a rare group that can be friends, yet keep the structure of authority intact.
I have, however, had the pleasure of such relationships. Maybe because I respect the boundaries, maybe because of good people skills by my boss/supervisor/foremans.
I have failed miserabley, however, in the reverse situation.
It can be a problem when 'one of the gang' gets promoted. Loyalty conflict, I had!

The number one rule of a successful business, I have heard it stated, is: "Your most valuable asset is your staff"

LOL
Sorry wen :O)

Good managers make the right decision 48% of the time, bad managers make the right decision 54% of the time. The good manger takes one third the time of the bad manager and more importantly, recognises when he/she made the wrong decision and changes it. The bad managers stay on the wrong course forever.

__________________
"The future is here. It's just not evenly distributed.

we're all friends in my office, from boss/owner to the rest of us (tea makers), but then again, there's only 6 of us, 5 in the office, in a small (50,000) town (city, but a small one).

We all knew each other before we worked together, and I think the boss gets more stick than any of us. (as he's the shortest)

We have a level of honesty and frankness which is rare in the modern world.

We also have great fun, especially at the bosses expense!

How to succeed as an Executive:

Tip to handling a situation about a meeting you were not invited to.

1. Remain calm. Yes your input was valuable, but the supervisor wasn't looking for valuable input. He/she was looking for nods, with scruntched eyebrows and half-sighs, "that's right."

2. Remain calm. You feel the coldness of adrenaline at your stomach as you look at the closed door, knowing you should be inside, more than any of them. After all, they're discussion a topic that's under your umbrella.

3. Remain calm. Blood pressure pressing at temples, this is so unfair. It was your chance to shine. You had colorful charts, you brought donuts. They didn't.

4. Remai..... that's it. Fill paper sack with shaving cream. Insert bag opening underneath door. Stomp hard. Run like mad.