How can I tell if I'm a micromanager?

There's a saying that rings so true: "People don't leave bad companies, they leave bad managers." Micromanaging is the absolute worst. If you're going to hire someone to do a job, TRUST them to do the job. Just because they may not do it like you would, doesn't mean they're doing in incorrectly. Did you achieve the expected deliverables or outcome? Coach but don't babysit. Listen and be open to new ideas -- you never know where you're next superstar will come from.

Don't expect your direct reports to be just like you. That's unrealistic. Everyone works in different styles and at different paces. Again, it doesn't make it wrong, just different. Employees are not robots, they're human.

Your good people leave!!
Craig Bissett - CEO - www.hiringsimulation.com

I'd like to address the last part of your question - "And what can be done to alter the perception without losing control of my group?".

In my experience, few managers "micromanage" because they are bad people or have a serious ego problem (yes, I've seen exceptions to my own statement). Rather, managers often micro manage when they desperately want to reach a certain goal and believe their team or organization is not getting there. I've been guilty of this myself where I will jump into a situation and "manage" it for one of my reports because I believe I can do it better or faster. This may help in the short-term but it definitely doesn't build the organization I need in the long-term.

So, I have to sit back and take a deep breath. I have to alter my mindset to work closely with the person on my team. Perhaps I need to have more frequent meetings with them to review progress. Perhaps we have to set mini goals. Perhaps I have to give them direct feedback on what I need. I also need them to tell me what they need from me for us to be successful. The bottom line is that I need to make the team member feel like they have "ownership" of responding to the feedback and "partnering" with me to address the situation. If they don't or can't respond, then "micro managing" may be totally legit.

Well, there was a good article in Inc. not too long ago about 10 things you should NEVER micromanage, which are:

1. Accounting
2. Human Resources
3. Social Media
4. Busy Work
5. IT Issues
6. Customer Concerns
7. Meetings
8. Creativity
9. Purchasing Decisions
10. Tracking Time

Source: http://www.inc.com/guides/2010/08/10-things-you-should-never-micromanage.html

I would say by reverse deduction that if you are guilty of being overly meddlesome in several of those areas, then chances are you are a micromanager. I think most classic micromanagers REALLY struggle with items 4, 7, 8 and 10.

... when you tell staff what you want them to do rather than ask for an outcome and how it fits with the overall business direction.

... when, on a regular basis you pull the task back or redo the task because your way is better

One thing that indicates micromanaging: tasks that you assign to others that involve creativity and innovation end up disappointing you because you don't see the results you want.

It's often the case that when you insistently tell someone what to do, they will stop wanting to do it. And it also confuses them. They start thinking more about what you want and less about what works.

Thanks for the many excellent contributions that precede this one.

Sometimes, though, real or perceived, micromanagement is in the eyes of others. A few years (and a few positions) ago, an employee commented during her evaluation that my micromanagement was an issue, not just for her, but for others on the team.

I created a penalty jar - when I was caught in the act of micromanaging by anyone on the team, I would put $5 in the jar. Employees (and there were only half a dozen) would decide at the end of a month how the money was to be spent. When I was called to task, I did not argue about whether or not I was micromanaging, but entered into a discussion with the employee to learn more about what I did and how the employee perceived my actions. It turned out my micromanagment was centered in some easily remediable areas, but those were generalized by the team, who attributed much more than was appropriate to my micromanagement.

I quickly modified my behavior in the problem areas and the team perceived that they had "taught" me not to micromanage. A win-win that only cost me $30; at the end of the month, I kicked in the difference and bought everyone lunch, joking before we left that I would only do so if everyone let me do the ordering.

...and when you are more concerned with people's inputs than the results they deliver. If you manage activity you get activity, if you manage results and outputs you get results.

.... and when you can't sleep at night because you don't know how your people got to their results instead of celebrating their results

you know you are a micro-manager if (in addition to many of the answers already posted) you apply a one size fits all approach to managing others. In other words, if you always direct closely, even on tasks or activities someone else knows how to do well because they don't know how or aren't motivated to do other things well, you are probably micromanaging.

Define excellence and your expectations. Provide coaching and guidance when someone knows what they are doing. If it is a new task or activity, clarify your expectations up front including how you want decisions made: they can make them and let you know, they should bring options to you and you'll decide, they should bring options to you and you'll decide together, etc. Once someone has demonstrated they are capable, get out of the way!

Do you tell people what to do or where, when and how to do it? A manager should assign work but usually doesn't need to dictate the rest.

Stop seeing the big picture, failure to achieve your own goals, your team hide from you.

In my experience, if I find myself asking the question and wondering if I'm micro-managing people,....chances are I am! That's the fastest and simplest way I can tell.

Think about the time you spend on working with your team memebers in
1. solving the problem
2. guiding them in the process of solving the problem themselves

2 should be the biggest part of your time spent.

When a team member talks to you about a problem they face, and you know the answer or solution, don't tell them. Ask them questions, that could help them find the answers themselves.

How often are you not satisfied with how your team members have gotten to a solution. You should really not care about the how, if the solution is good, be happy about it.

to Francine : Once you ask yourself the question, you're "cured" and aren't anymore a micromanager

The starting point is that you are concerned about. I've learned that different people need to have different management styles as wel as particular industries. Union shops need to have more of the micromanager while most technical/creatie shops need it less. You become more like a project manager who is trying to achieve a desire milestone/deliverable.

There have been a number of solid answers here. I've also thought about the way that I would want to be managed and treat others accordingly.

You are a micromanager when you want everyone to do their job the exact way you want it done and you check to make sure they are complying.

Well, if you're a micromanager your staff sure won't tell you. So you need to ask someone you can trust to tell the truth, like your kids or maybe your spouse.

My experience is that micromanagers don't punch out, they're ALWAYS micromanaging - sometimes for good reasons - but it never stops and borders on OCD.

An other way of checking if you're a micromanager is to know if by giving chances to your team to express themselves and give their best you're not fearing that someone comes out far better than you're.
If you're clever enough you'll accept that and help the person to get promotion.
I didn't experienced it myself but a very good friend of mine is working under the responsibility of one member of his former team.
Shortly, it means that you must not fear people who can overtake you. Instead make them friends !
It's a good rceipe to stay in a company you like to work for.

To Charlie : If you're a micromanager once for all as you think of it there are good chances that you don't listen even your spouse, kids or anybody you "trust" just because, as a micromanager, you will never accept such a comment.
On my behalf I think everybody gets a chance to improve but if you're closedminded it may only come from your own boss.

I've had experience being micro-managed. The points included:

* Looking over my shoulder to see what I was doing every 5 minutes

* Being told how to do something in the middle of resolving an issue when it was seen it was not how they would solve it

* My ideas becoming their ideas in comments such as "ahh - that's what I would do" (really?)

* Being pumped for information after every tiny little problem was resolved, where I was pumped not only for what was wrong and how I fixed it, but deep discussions WHY I did what I did.

I left because it was quite clear I was being used. Plus side: it was great experience in how a company should **not** be run.

When I ask someone to do something, I state clearly what I want doing, I may suggest a way to do it (though it is only that - a suggestion), I say when I roughly want to see it completed, to be notified of any issues so I can help resolve them to keep things going, and finally, I make it clear that if they have any ideas, to make them known. Once a task is under way, a mistake that people make is to think it is set in stone. I hopefully encourage people to be pro-active, more productive, and *happy* to do what they're doing.