Qualities of a good boss

I have been night shift supervisor at my new job for a little over a month now. I am trying to do a really good job and not do all the things I hated in a boss. I have told anyone who works under me that the only thing I care about is that the work gets done. If you come in do your work without issues you go home with me happy and have no problems. I work with a few guys who are always at each others throats because they both think they're the best machinists ever. I don't want to have any of that BS at night when I run the shift. I wanted to ask you guys what you liked and disliked in a boss. This way I can get a good perspective on the kind of boss to be.

I have been night shift supervisor at my new job for a little over a month now. I am trying to do a really good job and not do all the things I hated in a boss. I have told anyone who works under me that the only thing I care about is that the work gets done. If you come in do your work without issues you go home with me happy and have no problems. I work with a few guys who are always at each others throats because they both think they're the best machinists ever. I don't want to have any of that BS at night when I run the shift. I wanted to ask you guys what you liked and disliked in a boss. This way I can get a good perspective on the kind of boss to be.

The best boss will automatically know, that they will never be as good as, or as efficiant as their opperators.
My way, or No way, bosses are a real pain to work around, Ive always hated working under someone like that, "if it wasn't the bosses idea, we wont be doing it"
Dont forget to complement your employees, seems like alot of times, they only want to talk about your workmanship, is when there is something wrong with it.
Pizza once a week is a good plus too.

The best boss will automatically know, that they will never be as good as, or as efficiant as their opperators.
My way, or No way, bosses are a real pain to work around, Ive always hated working under someone like that, "if it wasn't the bosses idea, we wont be doing it"
Dont forget to complement your employees, seems like alot of times, they only want to talk about your workmanship, is when there is something wrong with it.
Pizza once a week is a good plus too.

be fair, be consistent, post your rules and enforce them!

be fair, be consistent, post your rules and enforce them!

ive had all kinds of boss's.

and i've been the boss.

to me the best you can do is be fair.
apply the rules to everyone the same.

i try to visit with my guys a little each day to see if there is any problems, ask about the kids little league, etc. no prying or probing just show intrest in them as a person who has a life and not just a employee.

now to address the EGO problem you have with these guys.

the root of this type problem is envy and jealousy.

personalities are difficult to deal with so here's what i would do.

show absolutely NO favoritism, and this may be hard especially if you've been there a while and some of the guys may be your fishing buddy's.

if a problem arises NIP IT IN THE BUD IMMEDIATELY otherwise it will snowball and then you'll really have a problem because factions will align and your position will be threatened.

one of the best boss's ive ever had was in Huntington WVa.
around 10:00 he would come around and take your lunch order and at noon about 20 of us would high tail it over to the diner. he was a great people person and would encourage you to perform your best and was never critical in open.

thats not to say he wasnt critical in private but if that occured it was between you and him, no one else.

so be firm and fair keep your eyes open for trouble and encourage your people...jim

[ 07-31-2006, 07:03 PM: Message edited by: toolmakerjim ]

ive had all kinds of boss's.

and i've been the boss.

to me the best you can do is be fair.
apply the rules to everyone the same.

i try to visit with my guys a little each day to see if there is any problems, ask about the kids little league, etc. no prying or probing just show intrest in them as a person who has a life and not just a employee.

now to address the EGO problem you have with these guys.

the root of this type problem is envy and jealousy.

personalities are difficult to deal with so here's what i would do.

show absolutely NO favoritism, and this may be hard especially if you've been there a while and some of the guys may be your fishing buddy's.

if a problem arises NIP IT IN THE BUD IMMEDIATELY otherwise it will snowball and then you'll really have a problem because factions will align and your position will be threatened.

one of the best boss's ive ever had was in Huntington WVa.
around 10:00 he would come around and take your lunch order and at noon about 20 of us would high tail it over to the diner. he was a great people person and would encourage you to perform your best and was never critical in open.

thats not to say he wasnt critical in private but if that occured it was between you and him, no one else.

so be firm and fair keep your eyes open for trouble and encourage your people...jim

[ 07-31-2006, 07:03 PM: Message edited by: toolmakerjim ]

I try to always compliment good work. I do this because I never had it done to me by a boss. I would also like people to look at me as sort of an equal, not better then them but having athority.

I try to always compliment good work. I do this because I never had it done to me by a boss. I would also like people to look at me as sort of an equal, not better then them but having athority.

That's what always bugged me about many of the "bad bosses". Suddenly, they are no longer an employee of the company like all the "workers" - they are on a higher plane, and are entitled to grab perks or get away with whatever they can.

I don't mind someone being in charge - there needs to be someone in charge in most situations. But if the company is paying you to be in charge, you are an employee doing a necessary job for the company just like the guy who does the necessary job of cleaning the toilets and making sure the garbage is taken out.

Increased authority doesn't mean you are a better person then everyone else. And often, bad bosses seem to forget that they are supposed to be shouldering increased responsibility along with their increased authority.

It is really demoralizing when the staff sees a supervisor who spends most of their time asleep and largely doesn't have a clue when awake, get the big merit pay bonus at the end of the year for the great work they were able to lead their staff in performing. Of course, the staff is usually doing good at that time to get a cheap ball cap or pen with the organization logo on it as their bit of a reward.

Also, a comment by one of the good supervisors I had made sense. He was good about asking the staff for suggestions - as was pointed out we were the ones processing the work and were likely to see where things could be streamlined or improved. But in the end, the supervisor is the one responsible to upper management and it is their decision that will determine what will be done, not the suggestions of the employees.

I have no problem with that in a supervisor that is obviously giving weight to the staff suggestions (along with having a clue about what is going on and why). The supervisor may have other factors they have to consider in the final decision, or they may just be picking one of several roughly equal options that they prefer over the others.

But then that supervisor took the responsibility for the decision. If we did our best to implement it, but it was the wrong decision, the blame stopped with him and wasn't passed downwards. Too often the credit stops with the bad boss, but the crap continues to flow downhill to the staff.

cheers,
Michael

That's what always bugged me about many of the "bad bosses". Suddenly, they are no longer an employee of the company like all the "workers" - they are on a higher plane, and are entitled to grab perks or get away with whatever they can.

I don't mind someone being in charge - there needs to be someone in charge in most situations. But if the company is paying you to be in charge, you are an employee doing a necessary job for the company just like the guy who does the necessary job of cleaning the toilets and making sure the garbage is taken out.

Increased authority doesn't mean you are a better person then everyone else. And often, bad bosses seem to forget that they are supposed to be shouldering increased responsibility along with their increased authority.

It is really demoralizing when the staff sees a supervisor who spends most of their time asleep and largely doesn't have a clue when awake, get the big merit pay bonus at the end of the year for the great work they were able to lead their staff in performing. Of course, the staff is usually doing good at that time to get a cheap ball cap or pen with the organization logo on it as their bit of a reward.

Also, a comment by one of the good supervisors I had made sense. He was good about asking the staff for suggestions - as was pointed out we were the ones processing the work and were likely to see where things could be streamlined or improved. But in the end, the supervisor is the one responsible to upper management and it is their decision that will determine what will be done, not the suggestions of the employees.

I have no problem with that in a supervisor that is obviously giving weight to the staff suggestions (along with having a clue about what is going on and why). The supervisor may have other factors they have to consider in the final decision, or they may just be picking one of several roughly equal options that they prefer over the others.

But then that supervisor took the responsibility for the decision. If we did our best to implement it, but it was the wrong decision, the blame stopped with him and wasn't passed downwards. Too often the credit stops with the bad boss, but the crap continues to flow downhill to the staff.

cheers,
Michael

Oh yeah, bonuses/awards. If they aren't something where everyone gets an equal cut, but rather are passed out based on individual performance, there's nothing quite like getting a modest bonus for hard/quality work you did, and then seeing the lowest common denominator in the staff getting an equal award with equal praise. I've actually seen people give a monetary award back in that instance, as they found it pretty insulting. If you are going to pass out money to the poor employees too, you should make sure there is no big "award ceremony" - do it in private. The word will still get out, but at least the quality employees aren't having their noses rubbed into the situation.

And if you are doing the big annual award thing, make the awards significant. Frankly, I'd much rather have a nice catered lunch brought in (and not just a couple of cheap pizzas) instead of being given one of those cheap "motivational" trinkets that are supposed to make you feel like a warm and fuzzy member of "the team". They just seem really insincere to me.

Insincere praise is very likely a LOT worse than no praise at all.

cheers,
Michael

Oh yeah, bonuses/awards. If they aren't something where everyone gets an equal cut, but rather are passed out based on individual performance, there's nothing quite like getting a modest bonus for hard/quality work you did, and then seeing the lowest common denominator in the staff getting an equal award with equal praise. I've actually seen people give a monetary award back in that instance, as they found it pretty insulting. If you are going to pass out money to the poor employees too, you should make sure there is no big "award ceremony" - do it in private. The word will still get out, but at least the quality employees aren't having their noses rubbed into the situation.

And if you are doing the big annual award thing, make the awards significant. Frankly, I'd much rather have a nice catered lunch brought in (and not just a couple of cheap pizzas) instead of being given one of those cheap "motivational" trinkets that are supposed to make you feel like a warm and fuzzy member of "the team". They just seem really insincere to me.

Insincere praise is very likely a LOT worse than no praise at all.

cheers,
Michael

IMHO
With a good boss you know what to expect.
A good boss ( I consider "my boss" to be part of management, the "how it gets done in a genaral way") runs interference with leadership (the "what you are supposed to work on" folks) when leadership tries to take on management duties, micromanage, or issue stupid proclamations and/or unfunded mandates.

A good boss is willing to spend a dime to save a dollar, and not vice versa.

A good boss usually praises in public and ALWAYS criticizes in private. Always.

A good boss sets the example.

A good boss has a servant mentality to a healthy extent ( I really liked the diner example! That sounds like a good way to build a cohesive team like a family...they say many family problems can be overcome by EATING MEALS TOGETHER (not in front of the TV either!)...

A good boss understands the difficulty of various tasks.

A good boss is not an MBA, but instead rose organically through the ranks, from the floor to management.

IMHO
With a good boss you know what to expect.
A good boss ( I consider "my boss" to be part of management, the "how it gets done in a genaral way") runs interference with leadership (the "what you are supposed to work on" folks) when leadership tries to take on management duties, micromanage, or issue stupid proclamations and/or unfunded mandates.

A good boss is willing to spend a dime to save a dollar, and not vice versa.

A good boss usually praises in public and ALWAYS criticizes in private. Always.

A good boss sets the example.

A good boss has a servant mentality to a healthy extent ( I really liked the diner example! That sounds like a good way to build a cohesive team like a family...they say many family problems can be overcome by EATING MEALS TOGETHER (not in front of the TV either!)...

A good boss understands the difficulty of various tasks.

A good boss is not an MBA, but instead rose organically through the ranks, from the floor to management.

Neil has it.
I have found that most people do exactly what you ask them to do, if it isn't right then you probably asked them to do the wrong thing with out knowing it!
Most people expect a boss to be a boss and are waiting to be told what to do [in a general sense]
A boss is a role to play just as an emplyoee is a roll. Most people understand that more or less.
I keep saying most because the few that don't screw it up for everyone else.
WHen ever I had to discuss something private or negative with a worker I would take them on a walk around the parking lot, private, no nosey secretarys can over hear you and it relaxes one another.
It took me a long time to understand the role angle.
BTW, demand that everyone to respect one another and don't be concerned if anyone likes each other, big difference between the two.

Neil has it.
I have found that most people do exactly what you ask them to do, if it isn't right then you probably asked them to do the wrong thing with out knowing it!
Most people expect a boss to be a boss and are waiting to be told what to do [in a general sense]
A boss is a role to play just as an emplyoee is a roll. Most people understand that more or less.
I keep saying most because the few that don't screw it up for everyone else.
WHen ever I had to discuss something private or negative with a worker I would take them on a walk around the parking lot, private, no nosey secretarys can over hear you and it relaxes one another.
It took me a long time to understand the role angle.
BTW, demand that everyone to respect one another and don't be concerned if anyone likes each other, big difference between the two.

Always be honest with your people even if they don't like it , if a boss is honest most but not all will respect him.
Stand up for "your people" if any bosses above you have a problem with anyone working for you, you be the one to handle it not the "day" boss.
Accept the fact that you will not always make everyone happy, just do the best you can & again be honest.

Always be honest with your people even if they don't like it , if a boss is honest most but not all will respect him.
Stand up for "your people" if any bosses above you have a problem with anyone working for you, you be the one to handle it not the "day" boss.
Accept the fact that you will not always make everyone happy, just do the best you can & again be honest.