Top 5 Reasons Employees Love Their Boss - and How to Be More Loved

According to a study from Gallup, fully half of all employees in the U.S. have left a job because of problems with their manager.

That means that being a great boss — a likeable, even loveable boss — isn’t just about being popular or being “nice.” Rather, it’s a retention issue.

Improving your skills as a manager should be as important a part of your job as helping your employees improve their skills. If you’re ready to become everybody’s favorite boss, try adding these skills to your repertoire:

1. Consistent and meaningful communication.
   The number 1 problem people cite with their bosses and managers is a lack of communication. If you can improve your communication skills and create a culture of open communication with your team, you will go a long way to improving your relationship with your employees. Most important, people want clear expectations and updates when it comes to what’s expected of them.
2. Give recognition and praise.
   According to Entrepreneur, 65 percent of employees would be happier if they got more recognition at work, whereas only 35 percent say they would be happier if they got a raise. Build a routine of recognition and praise. You can set a goal of giving praise to at least one employee per day, make it a part of weekly staff meetings, or set a reminder to send out “thank you” emails to staff regularly. Whatever works for you. Don’t worry too much about awards or even rewards; words go a long way.
3. Provide feedback, mentorship, and training.
   The role of boss as mentor seems to have fallen by the wayside somewhat in recent years, but people are still craving that kind of development role from their managers. Studies show that employees feel prouder of accomplishing harder work — but they need the right support to get there. Watch for opportunities to teach, to provide additional support, or to invite the right training for your employees. Make individual development a part of every job description.
4. Create a work culture by design.
   Good bosses find ways to foster a sense of community at work. Great bosses build that culture intentionally. A big part of that is finding and attracting the right team members — and making sure that the wrong ones move on quickly. It’s also about making sure those team members are in the right roles, the ones that make the best use of their particular talents and skills.
5. Create a safe space for failure.
   Some of you may cringe reading that, but the best bosses make their employees feel safe to take chances and fail. Employees who trust that their failures will be met with constructive feedback and support are more likely to think creatively, work outside the box, and come up with innovative solutions to problems. If people are too busy worrying about losing their job to take chances, you’ll never get their best work out of them. It’s important to foster a sense that you succeed and fail together as a team, so that no one is thrown under the bus.

What would you say is the best way to become a beloved boss? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below.

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Thank you for reading my post. I regularly write about performance management 
as well as the mega-trend that is Big Data for LinkedIn and Forbes. If you would like to read my regular posts then please click 'Follow' and feel free to also connect via Twitter, Facebook and The Advanced Performance Institute.

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Bernard Marr is a bestselling business author and is globally recognized as an expert in strategy, performance management, analytics, KPIs and big data. His new book is 'Big Data - Using Smart Big Data, Analytics and Metrics To Make Better Decisions and Improve Performance'.

You can read a free sample chapter here.

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