Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2020 - 36

Can you imagine how these numbers
may affect the bottom line? If we did
a rough calculation of time wasted
and a conservative cost estimate, we
easily reach an average of $75,000
per direct report. Multiply that by the
amount of direct reports per bad boss
(let's assume only five again) and you're
already up to an average of $375,000
per year.
While the bad bosses might be telling
themselves they're commanding higher
performance for the sake of the business,
they're actually having an opposite and
negative effect on productivity and
organizational performance. Bad bosses
prevent good work from getting done
and cause confusion for their direct
reports. Employees become exhausted,
disillusioned and burnt out. Because of
the mess they create, bad bosses cost
businesses billions of dollars in lost
productivity every year.

IMPACT ON
EMPLOYEE TRAINING

boss, training is never going to have
the intended effect.
In my research on the training climate
over the past 15 years, one consistent
finding has been that trainees reentering
bad post-training environments will reap
less benefits from the training than those
who go back to supportive bosses. In
fact, differences were so pronounced
that the group with supportive managers
achieved a positive return on investment
(ROI) while the other group had a negative
ROI. Having a bad boss can literally make
or break training investments and prevent
your development. Depending on the
cost and the number of participants, I've
seen anywhere from $1,000 to $20,000
lost in training dollars for all employees
under one bad boss.

THE BOTTOM LINE
ON BAD BOSSES

If employees are under the influence
of a bad boss and experiencing
lower motivation, engagement and
performance, what does L&D do to
close this gap? They give employees
more training. But if you have a bad

A bad boss can wreak havoc on people
and businesses. Each one can cost us
our health and happiness, as well as
the company he or she works for over
$500,000 every year. Direct reports of
bad bosses spend every day anticipating
future conflicts and ruminating over
previous ones. Employees' motivation,
creativity and performance are
devastated, costing them years of

INCLUDED/MONETIZED

NOT INCLUDED/MONETIZED

*	 Short-term health cost

*	 Long-term health cost

*	 Lost productivity at work

*	 Mental/happiness cost

*	 Time away from work

*	 Lost creativity/Innovation

*	 Turnover

*	 Stalled career growth

*	 Lost training dollars

*	 Bad company image

| 36

career growth. At home, their stress and
unhappiness take an unavoidable toll
on their personal relationships. Beyond
the mental upheaval, they can suffer
significant health problems, eventually
shortening their lives. Beyond the
conspicuous bad bosses, there are those
that influence so subtly that you may
not even realize why you're unsatisfied,
discouraged and unhappy on your job.

A bad boss can quickly drain
motivation and nosedive
productivity.
With bosses having this much sway over
our mental, physical and professional
health, it's no wonder we're sensitive to
their tones, moods and attitudes. Perhaps
that's why most people - even if they
don't have a really horrible boss - would
rather just spend the day without one.
Dr. Paul Leone is an industrial-organizational psychologist with over 16
years of experience as a measurement
consultant for top organizations around
the world. He is a sought-after thought
leader and the founder of MeasureUp
Consulting, where he helps companies
measure the impact of their training
initiatives. Email Paul.
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2020

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