When your boss asks your opinion on something or puts forward a proposal for changing the way in which a project is being run how many of you simply go along with the idea?
Is it because you don’t want any confrontation or is it because you don’t want to be seen to be disagreeing with the opinion of your manager?
For many employees it is the latter.
Managers have the authority and the power so why should a lowly worker challenge that?
There are 3 good reasons why they should and we want to show you why voicing your concerns and sometimes disagreeing with management is actually a good thing.
Mistakes Can Be Avoided
No managers are perfect.
Some perform their duties better than others however your boss, like everyone else, is prone to mistakes. If employees feel intimidated by their manager or don’t feel as though their authority can be held to account then mistakes such as bad policies, errors in their work or poor performance can be allowed to happen unchecked. Many workplace mistakes happen because an employee is too scared to voice an objection.
Disagreeing with your boss is an effective preventative measure as long as there is a way in which employees can voice their concerns.
It Encourages Debate
Many workplaces have an unofficial ‘whatever the manager says goes’ policy.
However this leads to the mistakes that we mentioned above. Encouraging healthy and constructive debate around proposals your boss puts forward or the way in which your team works contributes to a better and more effective environment.
If, as an employee, you can raise any concerns you have and that you know these will be taken on board by management, then there is a far higher chance that your workplace will operate smoothly. Constructive criticism and debate should be encouraged at work not ignored.
Bad Bosses Are Identified
We have all worked for someone who just can’t admit that they made a mistake. They usually pass blame onto others or wholeheartedly try and convince you that what they did was right.
Learning to disagree with management and analysing how they take this criticism is an effective way of highlighting a bad boss.
Power trips and ego are two things that never end well in a workplace and usually lead to a decline in staff morale, missed targets, poor performance and a high employee turnover. Disagreeing in a constructive way can show upper management just how well certain managers react to disapproval and take the necessary steps to address this.
Learning To Disagree With Your Boss
We don’t mean that you should undermine their authority at every turn.
If your manager is doing something wrong or suggests a proposal that you disagree with then there should be ways in which you can voice your opinion without getting into trouble.
Developing this skill not only shows that you take an interest in what you do but it will create a healthier and more productive workplace as well.
