"Problem managers fall into different camps," says Claude Balthazard, HRPA's director of HR excellence. "There are managers who are poorly trained or promoted to management for the wrong reasons, and there are those managers whose values and attitudes are at odds with that of the organization. Management training can prove to be useful for the first group but is not helpful for the 'bad apples' out there."

Signs of a Problem Manager
According to the survey, the most problematic behaviours exhibited by bad managers included:

• Inappropriate comments (74%)
• Favouritism (70%)
• Unwillingness to follow due process (63%)
• Treating employees with disrespect (62%)
• Bullying or intimidation (57%)

Tolerance
One third of respondents (35%) said their organization will tolerate just about anything from a results-achieving problem manager. The survey also pointed to a correlation between the degree to which an organization tolerates misbehaviour and the size of the problem that problem managers pose in an organization, suggesting that those organizations which turn a blind eye, or even reward, managerial misbehaviour will have more such misconduct.

Workplace Impact
Many respondents commented that problem managers have a strong impact on employee engagement, turnover and the bottom line; and that it does not take many bad managers to have serious morale consequences. Others noted that the incidence of problem managers may be underreported because employees are fearful of reprisals, and that issues can go undetected for a long time, until problems "blow up."

"The key is not to point out the negative consequences of problem behaviours, but rather to convince the problem managers that results will be better if they change their ways," says Balthazard.