For bosses, it is natural for them to manage employees, as one is the superior and the other the subordinate. However, many bosses overlook that they should also teach employees how to manage the boss; otherwise, if employees cannot manage the boss, the ultimate victim and the one who suffers the greatest loss is the boss himself.
I remember when I was studying at Peking University's international MBA program, I attended a lecture by a highly capable senior professional manager who had served as vice president at Huawei. This vice president, named Li Yuzhuo, was dismissed because he was not good at managing his boss, Ren Zhengfei. The reason was simple: Ren Zhengfei required Li to report to him frequently, but Li believed that he had already reported all major issues or matters requiring approval to Ren in a timely manner, and there was no need to report daily routine work. Li thought that as a senior executive like himself, he should share the boss's burden; if he reported every trivial matter to the boss, what was the use of senior professional managers like him?
Li Yuzhuo was eventually dismissed by Ren Zhengfei and parted on bad terms. Even in the lecture, one could hear his dissatisfaction and resentment towards Ren. As a senior professional manager, Li's mistake was that he acted according to his own ideal model of a professional manager, but Ren Zhengfei did not recognize this model. Undoubtedly, Ren Zhengfei is a remarkable entrepreneur, but he is not perfect, nor is he a boss shaped by an ideal model—no boss in the world is like that! He has his own unique behavioral patterns and management preferences. If employees cannot manage the boss well, even if they are highly capable, the boss will not use them because they are not handy to use! After all, the boss cannot adapt to the employees. In a company, the higher the position, the more important it is to manage the boss, because for lower-level positions, work content is generally quantifiable and clear, while for higher positions, work content is harder to quantify and there are more ambiguous aspects, making the importance of managing the boss even more prominent.
In fact, this is a lose-lose outcome. Although Li Yuzhuo was dismissed by Ren Zhengfei and suffered as a professional manager, the greater loss was Ren Zhengfei's. Li Yuzhuo was an excellent professional manager with strong professional abilities, and during his service at Huawei, he made outstanding contributions to the company's development; otherwise, he would not have been promoted to vice president. Li's departure meant that Ren lost a key general, and such a loss at a senior position cannot be measured in monetary terms. If, at that time, Ren Zhengfei had clearly told Li Yuzhuo that his management style was to pay attention to details and maintain close communication with subordinates to have a sense of security and control over the company, and clearly instructed Li to proactively adapt to the boss's management style instead of being confrontational and stubbornly adhering to his own model, the outcome might not have been mutually destructive.
For many bosses, teaching employees to manage the boss is something that is very lacking. Generally, bosses do not proactively and clearly inform employees of their management style and behavioral style; most of the time, employees have to judge or even guess on their own. But for employees, guessing the boss's mind is futile—you can't guess it thoroughly or accurately, which invisibly increases communication and management costs.
For employees, they need to learn to manage the boss; for bosses, they also need to teach employees how to manage the boss. The latter is often more important because relying on employees to figure it out and guess on their own is too inefficient. So how can bosses teach employees to manage the boss well? I have summarized seven major styles of most bosses' work and management for employees and bosses to reference.
First, reader vs. listener. Some bosses are readers, preferring written reports; others are listeners, preferring oral reports. If the boss is a reader, don't always call or report in person; instead, learn to write reports. If the boss is a listener, he may not even read your written report, or if he reads it, it may not resonate; in that case, employees should report in person or call directly, which will be much more efficient.
Second, result-oriented vs. process-oriented. Some bosses focus on results; if you report the process to them, they may find it annoying. Others are process-oriented; if you don't report the process, even if the result is good, their evaluation of you may not be good, because you have deprived the boss of information control, which is especially important for some bosses with strong control desires. Some bosses even focus not only on the process but also on details and are sensitive to details; in that case, employees should report specific details of the project progress.
Third, all-weather vs. special-time. Bosses generally have their own unique life patterns; some times they don't want to be disturbed, and some times they really like to hear reports. Some are early risers, some are night owls; some clearly separate work and life, while others are all-weather workaholics who treat work as life and life as work. So, figure out the boss's life and work patterns and do the right things at the right times.
Fourth, Jianghu-style vs. professional. This is closely related to the boss's background and origins. If the boss comes from a grassroots background, he is mostly Jianghu-style; if he has a big company background or formal corporate experience, he is mostly professional. For Jianghu-style bosses, you can treat them like brothers; if you always call him "boss" whether at work or off work, he may feel you are being distant, not close, and there is a sense of distance and unfamiliarity. For this type of boss, sometimes you need to be completely open and honest, even in a foot bath or bathhouse, to communicate more effectively.
Fifth, arbitrator vs. participant. What is the boss's basic attitude towards conflicts and contradictions in the company? Does he prefer to watch from the sidelines or personally participate in mediation? Does he prefer subordinates to resolve conflicts on their own, or does he prefer them to bring the issues to him for judgment and final arbitration?
Sixth, fair vs. preferential. Some bosses evaluate employees objectively and fairly, while others have strong personal and subjective biases. For example, some bosses judge whether employees work hard based on their overtime hours, while others judge loyalty based on employees' verbal promises.
Seventh, learning vs. experience. Some bosses are particularly sensitive to new things, have strong learning abilities, and are especially interested in new ideas and thoughts. Others are conservative, cautious, and only dare to make decisions and judgments based on old experiences and models.
Teaching employees to manage the boss is like a man pursuing a woman—it's like a mountain; but having the boss teach employees to manage the boss is like a woman pursuing a man—it's just a piece of paper! Employees need to learn to manage the boss, and when necessary, the boss should also be proactive, proactively revealing his management and behavioral style, and teaching employees to manage the boss. In doing so, the ultimate beneficiary is still the boss!
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