Is Your Boss In Trouble? 15 Ways To Tell

But time takes a toll. Eventually, our manager lost his edge. He made mistakes. Under pressure, his worst instincts bubbled up. After his boss gave him “the talk,” he grew withdrawn and tentative. He looked the other way as abuses piled up. Near the end, he was just cashing his checks.

Managers come-and-go. They are the easiest pieces to replace. When a manager leaves, it’s often a relief. Just remember one thing: You’re next. If your manager was in trouble, so are you. So when should you start worrying? Look for these signs:

1) Missed Goals: In sales, you fall short of your number. In project management, you miss a deadline or operate off faulty specs. In accounting, your calculations poison company projections. Whatever the reason, your boss is on the hook. In uncertain times, senior leaders always believe someone else can step in and do better. Your manager makes a perfect scapegoat. And canning him buys time for his bosses. Make no mistake: This isn’t a fresh start for you. You’re still under the microscope.

2) Unhappy Reports: It’s difficult to keep dissension under wraps. Companies know when employees are looking to leave their department. Stats and body language don’t lie: A demoralized and disengaged team is easy to spot. They’re the ones who don’t want to be seen with their boss. They blow off company golf outings and picnics. They don’t volunteer or share ideas. And their stats slowly trend downwards. The diagnosis is usually simple: The manager is losing control – and he’s already lost the team’s trust. Chances are, leadership is already looking for a way to ease him out.

3) Frenzied Pace: Everything is an emergency! Suddenly, your boss has assignments pop up out of no where. He needs answers now. You don’t get an explanation, nor do you hear what happened later. Everyone is taking note that your boss is working longer and later hours. And he isn’t slipping off to play golf anymore, either.

The higher ups are turning up the heat. Maybe they’re burying him in new responsibilities and red tape so he’ll fail or quit. More likely, they’re thinking short-term and win now. When the pace quickens, the expectations rise…and the margin for error shrinks for everyone.

4) Outbursts: Your boss feels trapped and wounded. And that makes him unpredictable – and a little unhinged.  Give him bad news and he’ll start a rant that could be uploaded to a Hitler video parody. Paranoid and moody, he’ll deny, whine, make excuses, and blame. Eventually, he’ll turn on you. He’ll claim you’re sandbagging him, throw you under the bus, and then bury you to anyone who’ll listen. That way, he can say, “See, it’s not me. This is the hand I’ve been dealt.” Keep some distance from your drowning boss. He’ll only pull you down with him.

5) Apathy: You get so frustrated. You work all those hours and handle the dirty jobs. And your boss? Well, he hides in his office, door closed, surfing the net. He arrives late, leaves early, and is always out sick when his bosses visit. He knows what’s coming. So he distances himself. And loses touch with what’s happening. He doesn’t even bother holding meetings, let alone making small talk anymore. You and your peers are just white noise to him now. That leaves you stuck in a holding pattern, waiting for your superiors to act. Your only option is to step in and fill the void.

6) Reduced Responsibilities: The higher ups are tightening your boss’ leash. They’ve hired a consultant to shadow him and conduct a BPM audit. They’re sending him to training and assigning a coach to him. He is no longer invited to certain meetings. His boss is even coming around regularly…to askyou questions. Most telling: They’re starting to re-assign some of his responsibilities so he can “focus.”

The decision has already been made. They’re giving him the proverbial push by slowly taking away his authority and autonomy. They may even be grooming his successor in front of him. Warranted or not, it’s a humiliating slap to the face. Eventually, he’ll walk away or blow up. It’s human nature. Question is, will you keep the same level of influence once he’s gone?

7) Decisions Delayed: Remember when you wished that your boss would delegate more responsibilities? That day has arrived…with a twist. Now, he is candid enough to say, “I don’t know” – before ordering you to find out. Instead of listening to your reasoning, he tells you to “Just do what you think is best.” When you press, he gives you a self-serving lecture on being proactive and resourceful.

What’s worse, your boss isn’t following up or following through. He evades questions and concerns, breaking promises and pushing back conversations, decisions, and evaluations. He has grown detached and sloppy. Eventually, it’ll start to reflect on you. Never forget: Everything he keeps at bay will eventually end up in your lap.

8) Personal Problems: DUIs. Divorces. Ailments. These aren’t distractions. They’re symptoms of something deeper like rising stress or personal dissatisfaction. And they’re spilling over into your boss’ performance. When your boss experiences a major life change, you can be certain that more dominos will ultimately fall. One could be his eventual departure.

9) Hovering: Suddenly, your boss wants to know everything you do. Worse, he wants to be involved in it. He requires daily plans and reports and grills you on time management. Don’t worry, everyone else is facing the same demands. In fact, your boss is now codifying his expectations in a departmental charter – and having everyone sign it. He understands his success (or survival) is tied to you. So he micromanages and documents everything. When this happens, you can be certain of two things: Your boss is receiving these directives from above… and he is on a performance improvement plan.

10) Focus on Appearances: You’d think a sense of fatalism would set in. Instead, you find your manager in denial. He’ll make himself believe that this is just a rough time. Over time, everything will work itself out. The best managers will cover their tracks and take credit for any accomplishments. The worst will hire motivational speakers and pick the low hanging fruit so they can say that they achieved something. Neither is real work, but that’s not the point.

Vulnerable bosses care about the appearance of stability and momentum. They imagine that their employees agree with them. They dread feedback and criticism. And their biggest fear is that someone will stray off message and expose their facade. When your manager can’t distinguish his yearnings from reality, you know his time is running short.

11) Crack Downs: Want to know the difference between a confident boss and a cowardly one? The former wants to know what you know. The latter asks how you know. Your boss may have sympathies to his people, but his loyalties are to his superiors.

To save his job, your boss will act no different than a third world tyrant. And that means reminding everyone who’s in charge. He’ll bribe, strong arm, and threaten. And he’ll make examples of people, to even scores and silence potential critics. His greatest fear is losing control. But intimidation only weakens his grasp. In time, he’ll overplay his hand. Before then, he can make your job miserable – and jeopardize your career as well.

12) Major Faux Pas: It only takes one mistake. Your boss may have blown off client meetings to go skiing. He might have publicly vented about his boss (or his boss’ spouse). Or, he could have staked the wrong candidate for promotion. It doesn’t matter. Word gets around. Your boss got caught. He lost credibility and trust. And he made some powerful people very angry.

America may be a land of second chances, but business isn’t. There are some mistakes you can’t come back from…and least not in the same company. If your boss has stirred things up, here’s some advice: Update your resume. Fair or not, your fate is often intertwined with his.

13) Attitude Changes: In the old days, your boss would fawn and flatter around his bosses. When he returned to you, he’d roll his eyes and bark orders like a drill sergeant. Now, he is suddenly praising you and offering constructive feedback. And you wonder what happened. There’s no mystery here. The higher ups heard the complaints about your boss. They’re coaching him…and holding an “or else” over his head. It’s as simple as that.

14) Weaknesses Show: Any boss can craft a no-nonsense persona. Over time, his track record will speak for itself. If he’s exposed for being closed, inept or (especially) weak, he’ll never re-gain his authority. His team will go around him or perform the bare minimum, knowing there are no repercussions. Eventually, the higher ups will notice. And they’ll hammer him for committing the cardinal sin of management: Lack of institutional control.

15) Not Advanced Professionally: Your boss has been doing the same job for years. You can bet he’s wondering, “Is this as high as I’ll ever go?” And his bosses are certainly asking themselves, “Can we do better?” “Is he holding talent down?” When your boss starts teaching or consulting, you can safely assume he’s thinking about making a move. And when you find his resume or business plan on the printer, be assured that he’s already decided to take the leap.