a single criterion

My job is changing scope and focus a bit, generally in a good way. We’ve hammered out a lot of the scope and responsibilities this week, and I have a meeting next week to nail down some of the logistics; hopefully I can talk more about it after that.

But as I navigate through all these discussions, it occurs to me that bosses, in general, narrow down to only two types: Not a Dick and, well, not Not a Dick. I can work with the former – might have some complaints here and there, but we can get along. For me at least, the big difference between the two types seems to be whether they listen to and respect the people who work for them. “Listen to” doesn’t have to mean “give in to”; I’m OK with someone listening to me and then saying “your objection is duly noted; I understand it but I have decided that we’ll do things this other way instead.”

I’d probably reconsider if it happened that way every time, but often the boss does really have a better understanding of the big picture or the politics or other factors involved; the employee probably understands the detailed situation better but that’s not always the only consideration. Of course, the less understanding or outside knowledge the boss has, the more likely they should be to follow employee recommendations.

Respect also includes seeing the employee as a person and understanding that the job is not the main thing defining the person: other commitments, other interests, health, the simple need to grow back before going back to work. A manager’s job is to make sure the work gets done, but a good one also realizes that other things are important too. (My current manager is particularly good about this, for instance when people need to work from home due to health or pregnancy issues.) Actually, Dutch office culture really encourages this perspective; too often US office culture doesn’t.

So anyway, yeah, my criteria for a boss is simple: I want one who’s Not a Dick. I can deal with most other foibles. Fortunately, my current manager qualifies, one of the future ones definitely does and I’ve got reason to think that that other one does too.