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THE BOSS AND SUBORDINATE 4

 It is not allways that thinking local helps the situation, despite the fact the most global standards are actually someone's local thinking.


We have had one major thinking local that ultimately destroyed thriving companies. I am referring to the indiginisation decree in the late 1970's that made Nigerians CEOs.


The other problem of thinking local is our national malady - Nepotism. It is really the leadership recruitment process, that results in putting the worsts and thieves as leaders.


- Directionless Boss: This is a situation where even the leader does not know where the organization is headed, some his/her subordinates have no direction. The Boss attends meetings and on his return, he is unable to brief subordinates properly and directs them to someone else for direction. This is a result of nepotism and ethnicity.

- Dependable Boss: Here is a situation where you work with someone who trust your judgement would defend you without hearing from you based on your past performances. During my active working time, I had opportunities in working with at least two men who fell into this typology. There were situations where snares were put on my way, with the hope that when they point the direction, I'll loose the favour of my boss.

Finally, my perculiar problems that has given rise to all these ten typologies. Let me mention only three and explain only one.

- Integrity

- Insisting on the truth

- Capacity to say my mind.

I worked in this company where I and my Boss were so knitted that should two of us were asked the same question at the same time in different locations, we would give almost the same answer. After working working together for two years, we started disagreeing very greatly that was now affecting performance generally. 

When I asked for a meeting on a Saturday, my Boss told yours truly that my insistence on the truth always was the problem stating a majority of employees were against my attitude. In response to my way out, he said I should start to speak half truth which I rejected saying that a half truth is a lie. Even when he put in another way, that I should play politics, that politics is about half truths, of course, I rejected. My boss told me, should I change from insisting on the truth which the man I go to meet on Lagos/Ibadan Expressway every month, he was going them to fight yours truly.

My response was, you are welcome. The outcome was I was cross transferred out of HR.

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