Within a team, employees tend to possess varying levels of intention and capabilities. Managers can use frameworks to help categorize employees based on two factors, the skills they can contribute to the team and the motivations behind each employee. Within this matrix, an important yet frequently overlooked group is employees who are highly motivated but lack the capabilities needed to effectively support the team. While these individuals are highly ambitious, they require additional training, support, and mentorship from their managers in order to truly recognize their capabilities. 

A common situation managers encounter team members with high intention and low capabilities is seen with employees who just started their first career post-graduation or international team members who may have received different training. Take for example Joe who is an American working with an Italian team. Joe is excited to join a new team and is motivated to demonstrate his skills to his new manager. Despite his solid career background and success in his previous team, Joe is unfamiliar with Italian regulations and has a slight language barrier. Since Joe has high motivation to succeed and contribute to his team, his manager should implement strategies to support Joe and guide his growth within the team. 

Many employees join a company or transition into new roles with high intentions to be successful. Although they are highly motivated, these employees may lack the necessary skills or experience that will help them become successful in this new opportunity. Recognizing these individuals is important for managers who want to increase their contributions to the team and promote a culture of growth. 

Individuals who have high intentions within their team often exhibit the following behaviors: 

Given their strong intentions to help the team achieve their goals, it’s crucial that managers retain these team members and support them. Retaining team members who are incredibly driven will empower other team members to buy into the team's goals. 

Low capability may be exhibited in different ways; managers should be aware of the following signs: 

Rather than perceiving these employees as underperformers, managers should view them as underdeveloped potential that can thrive with the proper guidance. 

Effective managers conduct self-reflection when they realize that a team member is struggling under their guidance. If a team member is not achieving their full potential despite their high motivation, a manager should consider what steps they can take to align their employee’s abilities with their strong efforts.

Something important to consider is the expectations that are set for this employee. An employee who recently joined the organization or this team may need some time to properly adjust to the new environment. Sometimes, employees simply need more time to work out some of the initial issues when joining a new team. 

Another consideration is what resources and training opportunities are available for team members. If someone is continuously struggling with the same tasks, it may not be a lack of capability but a lack of guidance. Ensuring ample opportunities for team members to develop their skills can drastically improve their capabilities. 

Since managers set the tone for their team, reflect on whether there is a culture of learning or if there is a culture solely focused on performance. Team members who are focused on achieving success without learning the proper skills to get there may struggle to expand their skillset, thus limiting their capabilities. 

Managers who take ownership of their team's development can transform high-intention employees with low capabilities into high-performing team members. 

A manager's responsibility is to support their employees through proper training, sufficient resources, and mentorship opportunities. If an employee is struggling due to a lack of capabilities is often a reflection of an ineffective management style and not the effort exerted by the employee. It’s imperative that their manager takes accountability for this disconnect and implements changes to properly support their employee. Here are some strategies for how managers can bridge the gap between intention and capabilities: 

Incorporate structured training programs that all employees to learn tangible skills needed to complete their assigned tasks. Hands-on training and continuous learning opportunities can drastically improve the technical and soft skills of team members. 

2. Foster a Growth Mindset 

Although high-intention employees are highly motivated, continuing to fail at a task may discourage their efforts. Managers should encourage the notion that skills can continue to be developed over time through practice and consistent effort. Helping employees to frame their setbacks as a growth opportunity can help them persevere through their challenges. 

3. Provide Feedback and Coaching 

Conducting regular meetings, structured coaching sessions, and constructive feedback gives valuable direction an employee may need to expand their capabilities. Rather than waiting for periodic performance reviews, managers should actively implement mechanisms to constantly provide feedback and actionable advice. 

4. Create a Mentorship Connection

Connecting high-intention and low-capability employees with highly experienced employees may allow for more accelerated advancement. Mentorship or peer coaching from a peer is a more natural way for employees to develop their skills. A mentorship connection may also have reciprocal benefits for the highly experienced employees because they may have less motivation resulting from them being on the team for a while. 

With the proper training and guidance from his manager, Joe was able to take his strong intentions for success and develop skills that help him be successful within his new team. Like Joe, underperforming employees sometimes just need a bit of guidance from their managers to unlock their full potential. 

High-intention, low-capability team members represent a growth opportunity. By recognizing their enthusiasm for team success, assuming ownership of their development, and implementing support systems, managers can strengthen their abilities and enhance the team. A manager who nurtures their employees ultimately builds a team that is both high in intention and highly capable. 

Managers play an important role in their teams, serving as a leader and guide. While managers' involvement in projects can promote growth for their team members, constantly overseeing team members and micromanaging them can lead to direct reports feeling untrusted and unsupported. Leaders with micromanaging behaviors often have good intentions, but stifle productivity through ineffective leadership styles. 

When dealing with a micromanager, it’s challenging to determine how to navigate the situation. While it may seem uncomfortable, addressing concerns to the micromanaging manager in a professional manner is the best way to promote positive change. Working under a micromanager is exhausting and causes the entire team’s morale to suffer. Communicating the negative implications of micromanaging and working to develop a solution will overall create a better team dynamic. 

Micromanagers typically don’t recognize that they are exhibiting these traits within their teams which is why it must be addressed through a conversation. While it may be intimidating to address a manager about their negative behaviors, their actions are majorly impacting the team. Micromanaging is making the work environment miserable for the whole team, and if unaddressed, will force the team to continue to suffer. Since micromanaging is already causing so much harm to the team environment, having a conversation has the potential to majorly improve the managers’ behaviors. 

Micromanaging is a pattern of behaviors that often stems from fear of failure and lack of trust of other members of the team. Managers have a lot of responsibilities, and the excessive pressure can cause them to be particular and overbearing on their direct reports. While micromanaging isn’t a positive solution, it is important to recognize that these behaviors originate from wanting the team to succeed. Lacking trust is another main cause of micromanagement. If a manager doesn’t have established trust with their direct reports, they may be compelled to become overly involved in their assignments. Since the team’s work is the responsibility of the manager, they may want more frequent and detailed communication because they want to ensure a successful end result. 

While there are various reasons a manager micromanages their team, recognizing the cause of these actions is a critical step in addressing the issue. Going into a conversation with the mindset that a manager is terrible because they are micromanaging isn’t a productive way of thinking. Since managers often exhibit micromanaging behaviors due to their desire for the team to succeed, it’s important to enter the conversation with the intent to adjust their behaviors for the mutual goal of supporting the team. 

Everyone on the team wants the team to succeed. With this common goal in mind of supporting the team, describe how this managing style is an obstacle to the team’s progress. Discussing different implications of their behaviors, such as how the team must sacrifice limited work time to constantly communicate updates with their manager rather than making progress on their assignments, can help a manager better understand the real impacts the micromanaging is having. 

When addressing the behaviors, make sure to utilize ‘I’ statements rather than ‘you’ statements. By discussing the personal impacts of their actions, a manager is less likely to feel attacked and be on the defensive. Using such statements opens the conversation up to be more collaborative. Owning the personal effects of their behavior rather than blaming the manager, communicates concerns in a way that promotes positive problem-solving. 

2. Establish Trust 

Since a lack of trust can cause micromanaging, working to develop a stronger working relationship with the micromanaging manager can establish more trust. During the conversation, collaborate on a solution that can encourage more autonomous work, while still allowing the manager to feel updated. For example, scheduling weekly meetings to share progress can alleviate hovering while working on assignments. Working together to devise a strategy that balances each other's needs, can begin to establish a foundation of trust. 

Managers may also lack trust because they aren’t confident in the abilities of their team members. Utilize this conversation as a moment to solicit feedback about areas of improvement. Working to develop skills can allow a manager to be more confident when assigning tasks and be less compelled to constantly check in. Establishing credibility through a stronger skill set will ultimately continue to create a more trusting relationship and minimize micromanaging behaviors. 

3. Provide Specific Expectations

As discussed, this conversation should include specific examples of instances when micromanaging behaviors are negatively impacting the team. Not only should the conversation address specific concerns, but a focus should also be placed on providing solutions. Collaborating to derive specific methods that the manager can adjust their behavior to better support the team will create a solid action plan. Without tangible steps for them to implement, it can be difficult to have an actual change going forward. 

4. Suggest Accountability Tools 

Another topic to discuss during this conversation is accountability tools. Scheduling meetings to revisit this conversation and collaboratively evaluate progress over time can also ensure accountability. Additionally, considering performance management tools for the manager to implement can work to reduce micromanaging behaviors. Tools such as AIM Insights can allow managers to better gauge their direct reports' performance without hovering over their work. Considering alternative creative approaches is a productive way to conduct this conversation with a micromanaging manager. 

Oftentimes managers are unaware of their micromanaging behaviors. As a direct report, it can be intimidating to address these behaviors, but it's important to remember that the issues will persist if undressed. When conducting this conversion, focus on giving specific ways these actions are harming the team, establish a trusting relationship, devise ways these behaviors can be adjusted, and collaborate on accountability tools to ensure tangible changes are made. 

A manager is responsible for ensuring deadlines are met and tasks are completed. Naturally, managers want the best for their team and are willing to assume more roles in order to help their team achieve success. Once managers begin completing entry-level tasks, strive for absolute perfection, and become overly attentive to their direct reports, they enter the territory of micromanaging. 

Although micromanagement often develops with good intentions for wanting the team to succeed, this management style can cause a lot of unintended consequences. When direct reports experience micromanaging, creativity is stifled, morale is decreased, and trust is lost. Micromanagement doesn’t just negatively impact employees, the additional effort used by managers who micromanage leads to severe exhaustion. Despite these negative implications on teams, micromanagers often continue these behaviors because they fail to recognize that they are micromanaging. 

An indication of micromanagement is resistance to delegating tasks. As a manager with more experience than other team members, it may feel challenging to assign tasks to direct reports who may have more underdeveloped skill sets. Something important to consider is the opportunity cost of completing these more entry-level tasks. Senior managers are more suited for higher-level tasks, so it wouldn’t be valuable for high-level managers to be completing entry-level tasks. Managers' time is more valuable on something that can only be completed with their knowledge and specific skill set. 

Imagine if Tom Brady spent his life mowing lawns instead of playing quarterback. His great attention to detail and strong work ethic would allow him to be very good at mowing lawns, but this wouldn’t be the best use of his unique skill set as a professional athlete. The same idea translates to managers struggling to delegate tasks. When managers spend time completing tasks that their team can handle, they become like Tom Brady mowing lawns instead of winning with their team. Effective delegation isn’t solely about assigning tasks to employees It’s about recognizing the team's strengths and trusting them to complete tasks, allowing managers to focus on tasks only they can do as a leader. 

As a manager, it is critical to understand what team members are doing and how it contributes to the overall objectives of the team. Managers who take this a step further, through very frequent updates and constantly involving themselves in employees' work, become micromanagers. Although it can be tempting to step in and help an employee who is struggling, managers shouldn’t be constantly working with employees on their tasks or taking over for them.  

Make sure to reflect on how frequently communication is conducted with employees. Managers who are constantly asking for updates and asking questions about minor details may be micromanaging their team. This is also applicable to managers who have employees constantly reaching out for confirmation. Whether or not it is explicitly stated, if employees frequently need to have their managers approve of interim task phases, there is likely a micromanaging relationship present. 

Another sign that a manager is a micromanager is how they monitor their employees. Constant oversight from managers can make employees feel scrutinized. Whether a manager is monitoring their team by being physically present or digital tools to keep tabs on everyone, a compulsion to constantly supervise employees is an indication of micromanaging. 

Micromanagers often confuse visibility with control. While managers need to be informed about their team’s progress, there’s a difference between keeping track of outcomes and obsessively monitoring every detail within the process. A healthy management strategy is to build trust and open communication with team members so they feel empowered within their roles. Employees are more likely to feel motivated and deliver creative solutions when managers provide them with more autonomy. 

Reflecting on the three previous behaviors is an important step to counteract micromanaging. Since it can be difficult to self-assess, asking for feedback from employees can be a powerful tool to recognize micromanagement. Creating an anonymous feedback mechanism where employees can share honest criticism can be a helpful way to diagnose micromanagement. 

 

Oftentimes, micromanaging can stem from managers stepping in when their employees are confused about a project. To prevent employees from becoming confused about a task, make sure to effectively communicate expectations. Not only should managers properly discuss what is expected from employees, but they must also encourage employees to ask questions to promote a better understanding. 

 

Micromanagers struggle to delegate tasks and often assume way more responsibility than they should. To feel more comfortable delegating tasks, managers can practice delegating less complex responsibilities. Gradually shifting responsibilities to employees works to establish trust and build confidence for employees. Not only will employees become more confident, but managers will also become more confident in the competencies of their employees. 

Micromaning often stems from managers feeling that their employees aren’t capable of completing their assigned tasks. Similar to practicing gradual delegation, managers should also collaborate with employees to further develop their skill sets. If an employee struggles with a particular software or another critical component of their role, managers can provide resources or specific training to help enhance their skills. By working to expand employees’ abilities, managers will be more confident in allowing their employees to assume more responsibility. 

Fear of failure motivates managers to develop micromanagement behaviors. One way to counteract this fear of failure is to work on developing a growth mindset. Managers who are able to shift their thinking to consider setbacks as a learning opportunity are more able to let go of their micromanaging behaviors because they are less hyper-focused on ensuring a standard of perfection. 

Changing subconscious behaviors is an incredibly difficult task. As a manager hoping to stop micromanaging tendencies, make sure to self-reflect often and evaluate the effectiveness of changes in management styles. Throughout this journey to stop being a micromanager, it is beneficial to receive guidance from peer mentors who have similar experiences. No one wants to be micromanaged and it isn't a productive strategy for managers either. Make sure to focus on the big picture and the benefits that will be experienced once micromanaging is out of the picture. 

When leaders interact with their employees, they gain insights into their employees' sentiments and commitment to their role. While this can provide valuable information to managers, these insights might not be entirely accurate. Managers shouldn’t solely rely on their instincts and the general mood of employees to determine job satisfaction and motivation. Conducting employee engagement surveys can allow managers to gather valuable data from employees that can be used to improve processes and increase employee satisfaction. 

Although engagement surveys are most commonly used by large organizations, small and medium-sized organizations would also benefit from the incorporation of engagement surveys. Leaders of smaller organizations may feel they can accurately measure the company pulse since they interact with employees on a regular basis and may even have a personal relationship with most employees. While this can certainly help gauge sentiments, some employees may not provide feedback if unprompted or they may not feel comfortable verbally relaying honest insights. An engagement survey can bridge this gap by providing a structured way for leaders to solicit honest feedback, allowing them to address employees' concerns and improve organizational performance. 

Employee engagement is a metric that represents how employees feel about their organization, which consists of how motivated they are to work and their level of commitment to the company. Employee engagement may sound like a vague concept, but the utilization of engagement surveys can allow organizations to take abstract employee feelings and convert them into quantifiable metrics to make productive organizational changes. 

An employee engagement survey is a tool companies use to gather engagement data from their employees. The survey typically consists of questions covering key engagement drivers, including leadership, company alignment, and professional development. Employees respond using a consistent scale indicating whether they agree or disagree with a question. Companies often also include open-ended questions and general comment sections to gather employee insights that might not have been captured directly by the close-ended survey questions. 

While owners and leaders of small organizations may believe they know what works and what doesn’t at their organization, an engagement survey creates measurable insights into employees’ feelings about various aspects of the organization. Engagement surveys will not only provide data on overall company engagement but also specific aspects that are driving engagement to better understand employee motivations. These surveys can help uncover company aspects that motivate employees that might not otherwise have been considered an important part of the organization. 

2. Identify Areas for Improvement 

Engagement surveys can allow leaders to better determine opportunities to improve the employee experience. Aspects of an engagement survey that receive lower scores from employees can indicate important areas for leaders to prioritize improvement. Engagement survey analytic tools help management sift through the data points generated from engagement surveys to identify critical areas of improvement more clearly. 

3. Measure Engagement Over Time 

Organizations should conduct engagement surveys periodically to monitor employee engagement over time. This strategy allows organizations to observe trends and measure the impact of various initiatives. A single survey is valuable to gather information but is limited to that point in time. Regularly conducted surveys allow organizations to understand their strategic decisions. Tracking engagement over time takes away some of the uncertainty of improving employee engagement. 

4. Cultivate Employee Trust 

Organizing employee engagement surveys allows employees to feel more heard within their organization because gathering feedback signals that management cares about their input. This creates a more supportive environment that fosters a culture of valuing individual contributions. A key component of fostering trust through engagement surveys is to make tangible changes to reflect the feedback from employees. There is no importance to gathering feedback if there aren’t actionable steps that reflect them. Ensure that the implemented changes are communicated to employees so they are in the loop and continue to feel valued. 

5. Retain Valuable Talent

Specifically, within small to medium-sized businesses, it is crucial for companies to retain their employees. These more close-knit organizations may have less standardized roles that require knowledge about specific company practices. Losing employees who have developed a deep understanding of the organization over time is incredibly valuable to the organization. Furthermore, replacing employees is a costly endeavor due to the time and resources required to retrain employees. Understanding what motivates employees and areas of concern will work to retain valuable talent which overall benefits the productivity of the organization. 

While engagement surveys provide many benefits, their value heavily relies on the quality of questions being asked. Using software specifically developed to provide employee engagement survey questions can help organizations ensure their engagement survey-driven improvement efforts are done effectively. Ambition in Motion’s AIM Insights tool provides valuable insights that deliver tangible results companies can use to benefit their employees and the organization as a whole. Through survey question creation and visual reports, Ambition in Motion provides deliverables to effectively identify areas of improvement and streamline action planning for organizational improvements. 

As a leader of a small or medium-sized business, Ambition in Motion recognizes that spending on engagement surveys may not be a top priority and provides completely free engagement survey services. These surveys focus on critical aspects of company productivity: ream cohesion, energy from doing work, alignment with the company mission, and work complementing strengths. After distributing surveys to employees, leaders can visualize areas for improvement and areas of company strengths. 

Another benefit of Ambition In Motion’s employee engagement survey, AIM Insights, offerings is the ability to learn how various leaders respond to different scenarios. Using a database from other leaders, Ambition In Motion provides insights about what a good, medium-performing, and poor leader would do in scenarios leaders commonly face. Furthermore, an AI reporting structure is under refinement that gathers employee sentiments and provides specific feedback to managers on how to improve their management style. With all of these tools, managers can be well-equipped to make tangible improvements in response to their employee engagement survey feedback. 

In many organizations, confidence often indicates strong leadership. Managers who display a strong sense of assurance and decisiveness are recognized for their strong encouragement and serve as an inspiration for their team. Although confidence in leadership is motivating, it becomes detrimental once it evolves to overconfidence which can significantly impact decision-making and organizational success. Learning to recognize and manage overconfidence is essential for management success. 

Overconfidence is a cognitive bias discussing how people tend to overestimate their abilities or the accuracy of their predictions. The National Bureau of Economic Research published a study exemplifying the overconfidence bias. This study revealed that financial executives only saw actual market returns fall within their expected confidence interval 38% of the time. This large discrepancy highlights how overconfidence presents in management, leading to flawed decision-making. 

Overconfident managers will often underestimate the risks associated with their decisions and ignore contradictory evidence to their beliefs. This exclusion of important information creates an illusion of control and a false sense of stability. Managers may believe that their expertise on a subject matter or past successes exempt them from facing significant challenges, leading to unrealistic project timeline estimates, exceeding budgets, and encountering unanticipated challenges. These unplanned issues can become incredibly damaging within complex organizations when there are high stakes and slim margins of error. 

While optimism and overconfidence may sound similar, the two concepts are distinct and have opposite effects. Optimism is characterized by possessing a positive outlook, which can motivate teams and rally a community. Overconfidence is an inflated sense of certainty that leads individuals to disregard contradictory evidence and discredit potential risks. When considering the two concepts, optimism can coexist with realism as managers can be positive yet skeptical. On the other hand, overconfidence often leads to misjudgments. 

The repercussions managers experience due to overconfidence are far-reaching and can lead to:

Determining unrealistic budgets or timelines can disrupt promising initiatives. Managers who overestimate their team's abilities or efficiency may put excessive pressure that they are realistically unable to perform. This can lead to a cycle of missed deadlines or increased costs, ultimately leading to a loss of stakeholder confidence. 

2. Poor Decision-Making

Ignoring alternative solutions can reduce innovation and can result in suboptimal outcomes. Failure to consider dissenting information and solely relying on a manager's previous experience can exclude important information in the decision-making process. This closed-minded approach can leave the organization vulnerable to risks that may have been avoided with a broader perspective. 

3. Erosion of Trust 

Persistent overconfidence that leads to multiple failed projects can destroy a mangers credibility. Not only can this reduce trust, but a team's morale may suffer from the continued failure to meet expectations. Over time, low morale can result in higher turnover rates as team members seek out environments with more achievable goals. 

Reach out to gain an external perspective to help counterbalance internal biases. Eliciting guidance from consultants, peer mentors, or even team members can provide a unique perspective. Incorporating various insights works to challenge assumptions and highlights areas of overconfidence. When gathering these perspectives, make sure to include diverse viewpoints. Individuals from different backgrounds, expertise, or organizational levels can help uncover hidden assumptions. Consider anonymous feedback mechanisms to encourage honest input. 

2. Solicit Disconfirming Feedback 

Actively seek out information that contradicts initial beliefs. While this may be uncomfortable, it's essential to identify blind spots in judgments and improve strategies. If struggling to find disconfirming feedback, put a team member in charge of seeking out contradictory information. Tasking a team member with this role can help prevent bias while sourcing the information. Furthermore, establishing “devil’s advocate” meetings that encourage team members to critique proposed ideas can make it easier to identify potential flaws in plans. Encouraging open conversation and critical perspectives can add value to the decision-making process. 

3. Consider Consequences 

When evaluating decisions, it is important to consider the consequences of each solution. Planning for each scenario and evaluating each on a case-by-case basis can work to remove initial biases. Incorporate quantitative tools such as cost-benefit analysis to objectively evaluate options. Additionally, dedicate time to review the long-term implications of decisions to ensure alignment with team and organizational goals. 

4. Utilize Decision-Making Framework

Structured decision-making processes, such as SWOT analysis, can help mitigate overconfidence by ensuring consistent factors are evaluated on the same criteria. Consider documenting the decision-making process for transparency and to use it for future decisions. 

5. Create a Culture of Openness

Create an environment that empowers team members to voice concerns and challenge ideas. Building a space that fosters psychological safety is crucial for gaining diverse perspectives and challenging overconfidence bias. Regularly reinforce the importance of constructive feedback and encourage team members to respectfully question assumptions. Leaders must set the tone by modeling openness and encouraging discussions. 

Overconfidence bias is a challenge that many managers face, but actively implementing strategies to prevent this bias can ensure strong leadership capabilities. By understanding the root causes of this bias, and adopting strategies to counteract it, managers can make more informed decisions and enhance their organization. Cultivating an open environment, seeking diverse perspectives, and embracing uncertainty will lead to stronger, more effective leadership.