Admit it. How often have you questioned – whether in private or out loud – the big decisions made by bosses? Examples abound, of course. Why did we acquire that site? Granted, parking is not bad. But where can I get a decent lunch outside? Why did we hire that manager? (Yes, that buffoon.) And remind me again why we didn’t bother with cybersecurity?

One would have thought that, given their years of relevant experience and commensurate salaries, leaders would make consistently good decisions. Alas, not so! But let’s be fair to our senior colleagues here. Perhaps we should not be overly critical about genetically predisposed, hapless Mr. Beans and ill-fated snake oil salesmen – check out Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic’s (2019) Why Do So Many Incompetent Men Become Leaders? Perhaps it’s not their fault entirely.

Moreover, it is also true and fair to say that decision-making at the top can be hard irrespective of natural, managerial ability. There are many reasons why this is so – here are six big ones:

What should you do if your boss is a pedantic micromanager of the worst order and a strategy dunce who hitherto has added little value to your career? If you are unlucky and have a hapless Mr Bean or a snake oil salesman as a boss, whose behaviour and competence level have long since ossified with no prospect of change, then realistically your only option is to leave the organisation.

But what if your boss is more like Mr Magoo, strategically shortsighted but not totally without hope (i.e., not averse to humble self-reflection or a reimbursable trip to the optician), and you would rather stay at the organisation than move on? What can you do to help bring out their inner Elon Musk or Peter Drucker?

Such managers pose a challenge to you and the organisation, as they can harm your career, team morale, and overall productivity. Addressing the issue is, therefore, crucial. Here are steps to effectively deal with bad managers: