The term “Drive-by Manager” is one that I have applied to the manager who routinely leaves the scene of an accident – one created by the manager.

“Hit and run” applied to the workplace.

The stories I have heard about “bad bosses” would be amusing if they weren’t so damaging to the people affected. It is sometimes difficult for me to believe that managers actually treat their employees the way they do.

A friend was telling me about his wife’s experience with a prototype Drive-by Manager. After working for several years for a great manager, she found herself with a different boss because the great manager was promoted. The change in management style was dramatic, and over the course of time was extremely damaging – to her AND to the company because she quit.

Another Drive-by Casualty. This is the typical scenario that repeats itself over and over in the workplace: employees join companies, but they quit managers.

This particular Drive-by Manager specialized in criticism. Hyper-criticism, actually. You know the type – employees never do anything right, and on the rare occasions they do, there is usually little, if any, acknowledgment of their work. An additional symptom that often accompanies the the hyper-critical manager is a lack of self-awareness. These managers are always blaming someone else (usually employees); it is always someone else’s fault.

When my friend’s wife announced her resignation to the Drive-by Manager, he eventually told some of the other employees that the reason this tenured and highly productive employee quit was because she disliked another employee in the office.

Uh huh.

At least two lessons here: 1) Self-awareness is a critical component to effective management and leadership. What are your weaknesses? If you tend towards criticism and offering little encouragement or recognition, you need to have the courage to address your shortcomings in these areas if you REALLY want to be a better manager. 2) Most employees will never confront the hyper-critical boss. There are a lot of reasons for this – including the fear of further criticism – but most employees will simply start to disengage and look for employment elsewhere. Such was the case with my friend’s wife; she simply announced her resignation and did not offer the real reason for leaving. If you have an employee leave unexpectedly, look very closely in the mirror.

Are you the Drive-by Manager that created the accident?