Having a boss who’s too ‘passive’ or hands-off is a red flag
Having an uninvolved boss may sound appealing until he or she displays some red flags.
The positive side is obvious. Calm bosses don’t micromanage. They give their employees autonomy and create a sense of freedom and flexibility in the workplace. Thirty-eight percent of employees say they value a hands-off management style October report From HR software provider BambooHR.
But co-CEO Fineas Tatar says some interventionist managers are too passive. Long live TalentA business that connects remote executive assistants with CEOs and other executives. “Passive leadership, in my opinion, is when leaders avoid difficult decisions,” says Tatar, whose job involves working with a variety of people managers across multiple industries.
“They delay feedback and naively think things are going well because they look busy but aren’t really productive… Hiding passive leadership [as] “I think autonomy is very dangerous.”
Covered hands are not inherently bad. Some employees perform best when working autonomously. Many have gained self-direction thanks to consistent results. Tatar says good bosses know when to empower their employees in this way.
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But a manager can create problems by intervening for reasons that have nothing to do with their employees’ success, she says: “This mindset also permeates their behavior regarding direction, controls, guidance, etc.” Tatar adds that three problems can arise if a manager unnecessarily takes a backseat:
- A boss’s silence can be misinterpreted as approval, potentially resulting in decreased performance or leading employees to make blind decisions.
- Their “nice guy” attitude hinders growth. Without adequate feedback, support and professional development, employees are likely to seek out a more challenging environment.
- Their delayed decision-making stalls the momentum. Projects stall, deadlines aren’t met, and employees aren’t motivated to do their best.
According to the BambooHR report, which surveyed 1,500 full-time salaried employees in the United States, 33 percent of employees who left their jobs in 2024 left due to lack of constructive feedback and 34 percent left due to lack of recognition.
“It’s negative on all fronts,” Tatar says. “Because when people don’t feel supported — when they feel like they don’t have that guidance — they feel like they’re making a false promise.”
What should you do about your passive boss?
You might be tempted to judge a passive boss as a bad boss, but they may be too busy with too many things to pay personal attention to their direct reports, and that’s not necessarily their fault, Tatar says. If you see that your manager is starting to become a passive leader, try communicating with him or her more directly about your needs, he says.
For example, you can let them know how you prefer to receive feedback or when you’re competing for a promotion and would like more guidance and support about a particular part of your job. Tatar says these conversations are “disturbing” but necessary for your professional success.
If you have recurring meetings with your boss, you can use them as a “pulse check,” she adds. Ask them how they’re doing, how they feel about the work you and your team are doing, and voice any concerns you might have, Tatar says.
Tatar also advises leaders to do self-check-in. “Get your own pulse checked. For example, [on a scale of one to five] ‘Where am I today? … Is there still a strong reason for me to be here? Did I still believe in the mission? How is my personal life? “How is my business life?” he says. Then pick the lowest scores and solve those problems first, he says.
“Starting tomorrow, anyone can do this,” he adds.
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