Employee feels micromanaged if I give her tasks with deadlines

[calmama]

I manage a person who is generally difficult. She objects to… well everything and undermines me at every chance she gets.

When she first started working for me we sat down together and established a work plan to get our job done and keep us on track to meet deadlines. We agreed I would assign daily tasks and we would meet weekly to discuss progress on projects along with anything new we had to take on, along with any business changes, leave, etc.

Weeks down the line she exploded at me for colour coding priorities, saying the urgent (red) tasks were ‘very unfriendly and freaking her out’. I took the red out.

A few weeks later she exploded at me for ‘micromanaging and bullying her’ by sending her daily priorities, despite this being agreed upon from the very start. I asked for an alternative way of progressing projects. She had none.

Today she exploded at me for setting deadlines because they ‘stress her out’. Again, I asked her for an alternative way of doing things and she had none.

I’m at a loss. She’s doing honestly the bare minimum and can’t seem to cope. I’m having to pick up her slack because otherwise my team looks bad, yet I’m still copping the brunt of her rage and there’s no end in sight.

AIBU to throw my hands in the air and take a long vacation?

So basically she can't or won't do her job. You can't manage someone like that and her complaints at your efforts to do so are her gaslighting and blaming you for her incompetence. It's not your methods that are the issue, as a competent employee would have a professional discussion about what wouid work for them. You need to report her to the powers that be at your work place and take advice from them.

Document. Save emails. Show HR everything and get THEM to let her know that she is not meeting deadlines or expectations and that she is being performance-managed.

Go to HR

You need to think about a way to set her clear observable output targets that won't allow her to slack off without micromanagjng daily tasks. It needs to be really clearly delineated just what areas/projects are her responsibility in their entirety and agree that with her. Some sort of weekly monitoring probably still ok but don't not daily and also don't step in to pick up her slack. Tell her to come to you if she needs help instead.

It sounds like she needs “micro managing” be honest! Or at least close management.

Some people like to throw out buzz words to try to get out of doing any work.

She could stop you doing this by actually doing her work!

No issues with what you are doing - she is clearly choosing to do no work, be paid and then looking for trigger words to complain when you try to get her to do her job...

It is clear that she needs to be micro-managed, but the way to do it might be to take the personal element out of it somewhat - an easy way to do that is:

• have a dashboard (some companies have bespoke ones, but you can also do it in Excel)
• have all the tasks on there, including yours
• have deadlines you agree together (you set them, she agrees them unless there is a constructive reason why not)
• then set cell conditional formatting so that if the due date is x number of days away from today it goes amber, and if it is today or beyond it goes red.
• When a task is complete, mark it as complete and enter the date
• Excel can then look at stats on completion date v. due date.
• Have a process by which a due date can be modified, but mark the task as date extended or equivalent so that you can also report on that.

It then becomes non-personal, makes very clear who is performing and who is not, and allows you to give them complete freedom from micro-management in a personal sense as the spreadsheet does the management - it removes personalities from the equation, but keeps tasks on track. You can also use it to promote reward for those who achieve xx% before due date etc. - some companies might link it to annual bonus decisions etc.

but don't let it drop - she is bullying you because she doesn't want to do the work, but she is paid to do it, so it needs to be brought back on track...

Did you recruit her or did she move across from another team? I can understand why with a new team member you'd list out tasks and deadlines, check in regularly, and once she's got the hang of the workflow and she's top of things and is capable, back off. Is she still in her probation period? If so I'd extend it. But frankly as she's not achieved any competencies (and presumably the rest of the team work ok) then I'd speak to hr about performance management options.

Thank you @Singleandproud . I’m to the point where I’m walking on eggshells because of her frequent explosions, either at me or at the world in general. She keeps asking for a clean slate each time she abuses me and backtracks. I reassure her and give her one and tell her it’s water under the bridge only for her to explode at me again.

Re the daily tasks. It’s just she and I. When I send the tasks and we discuss things at our weekly meetings she can see we are both working on things towards a common goal.

I’m sure it might seem like micromanaging if I ask her to secure a venue, but her role is to coordinate events and she hasn’t done a single thing to coordinate anything so far. I have already left her to it, only to find nothing progresses and get some feeble excuse like she couldn’t find the number of the venue.

Re another poster saying it’s not a secret organisation, you’re right. It’s not. But if my boss says here’s a social media post that needs to go out urgently, it would be great if I could pass that on and trust that she will indeed get it put urgently!

I couldn’t tolerate a job where I was set daily tasks by my line manager. 🥴

I don't see what's wrong with the lists either, some jobs have email inboxes to monitor, others have ticket queues, others use planning tools...this is just another variation on that.
She's basically having her to-do lists created for her and she STILL can't get the work done. I would be tempted to stop all this, and copy her into emails etc for a couple of weeks as a PP suggested, and see if things improve. If she does, great. If not, then time for another conversation.

Are you in marketing?

When I was an exec I was still responsible for projects like : contact venues, put together a sheet detailing costs etc

I was never sent daily tasks like that. We would have weekly meetings and daily stand ups just align priorities.

If she is rubbish maybe you need to let her fail?

Hi @calmama

I think 🤔 it's very telling that she hasn't achieved hardly anything to note,

I think you to give her limited trial period a probation for her to show you effectively she can cope and manage her work tasks appreciate,

She has had more than enough support, micro managing she needs to prove her worth,

If she just can't cope with her designated work tasks after the limited work trial probation period,?
vist HR , and have evidence instances of how ineffective no good for the company this employee is,

and then look into the alternative of the process of losing sacking her from workplace permanent,

I am wondering does she have hidden learning challenges disabilities or on the spectrum Autustic ect by any chance then?

If she has?

Is there such thing as useful beneficial ways that can help support someone to work more efficiently if there have hidden learning difficulties?

Are you new to management OP?

Daily, bitty task lists being sent to me would drive me nuts. It's grunt work with no oversight, no real input or autonomy, no 'feel good' feeling of a worthwhile job completed. It's pretty much the definition of micromanagement.

What's her actual job? What is her area of responsibility? Bookings? Marketing? Social media posts once a day/week/whatever? Obtaining quotes?

None of the things you've listed would NEED to be done there and then that day AND only known about that very morning.

She needs to know, in advance, what her role actually is. Not be instructed small task by small task every single day.

I wouldn't allow her to verbally abuse me and "explode" then demand a clean slate.

I think you need a conversation with HR detailing everything that has happened so far with a view to a performance plan and ultimately getting rid of her.

She will be terrible for team morale, both with her lack of work and her attitude.

I couldn't work with someone like her and it sounds like you've given her multiple chances to prove herself and you've been pushed into micromanaging her due to her doing fuck all otherwise 🙄

oops typo omission, i ment to say need *

@akkakk I can’t use red because it triggers her.

I have a similar thing set up where it clearly lists each of our tasks and deadlines to do each so we can meet the general deadline. We agree on these every week. I have asked her multiple times to come to me if she thinks she may not be able to meet a deadline. She never does and when it comes up at the meetings and revisit the dashboard she just has excuses or explodes at me. It’s unworkable.

What is she doing instead of the things she should be doing?

I'm sorry OP but I couldn't work like this either.

a PP mentioned Ccing her into emails - this would work better. then she can colour coordinate her own tasks in her inbox.

I don't use red. Red is antagonising! We use pink instead 🤣

It does sound like she's difficult. but so are you.

another typo omission
i ment to say appropriately *

Assuming this is typical

1. Do an urgent social media post about x (no research or anything required, just a simple but timely post), 2. Contact a venue re potentially holding an event there next year, and 3. Look into caterers at said venue for a quote. Does this seem like something you could get done in a week?

The above is a morning's work (3-4hours) assuming delays in responses from venue /third parties I'd expect a 72hr turnaroundax on 3-4hours of work.

She sounds like she is throwing her weight around if you are.walking on eggshells.

Firstly firmly tell her there is a way to say things. Losing your temper and blowing up are not professional or acceptable.

Flag to your line manager
Get HR in
Get her on a PIP and out.

Try using a prioritised Trello board so she can pick up tasks and move them from the TODO to IN PROGRESS column, rather than message her every day. If it's prioritised then there's no need for colour coding. Do you have a team or is it just you and her?

Perhaps have a 10 minute daily meeting where you go through the things you got done yesterday, and what you're working on today. Look up "stand up meeting" and see if that works better than your current set-up. This is used a lot in Tech and it works well.

It sounds like she is new in the role? If she's causing this much trouble it won't get better. I'd put things in writing about what you've agreed and never meet with her in an office with the door closed - you need others to hear her anger so she can't deny it.

And contact HR to document the negative impact it is having on you.

What is she doing in the office then? Can you see her screen? If she's sitting in work for 8hrs a day - you must be able to tell what she is looking at?