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My manager gave me a brief assignment and I completed it on time and correctly, but he tore into me and criticized the work up and down. I showed him in black and white that he was wrong, and then he said he did not care. He has not talked to me since and it's been a few days. What do I do now?



Your manager does not sound like he can manage. In the first place, this business of tearing into an employee is terrible. In most cases, when managers engage in this juvenile behavior, they are displaying immaturity, lack of self-control, and probably a dose of self-doubt. The fact that he said he did not care after being proven wrong furthers the point.

The best step to take depends upon what you know about this person's track record. Managers who treat others this way have typically done so numerous times in the past. Such an outburst is rarely an isolated event. As a result, take a look at this person's past performance. If you're new to the company, ask around and you will hear about his typical response pattern.

Some of these managers crawl back to the targeted employees and apologize, while some act as if nothing ever happened, and still others wait for the employees to approach them. There is probably a well-worn path at your company, and all you need to do is find it.

You might want to step back from the incident and see if there is a bigger message here. For example, if this type of managerial behavior is acceptable in the company, is this company acceptable to you?




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