What Micromanagement Reveals about Leadership

This essay offers an ameliorative account of micromanagement from the perspective of those who experience it. It attempts to address hermeneutical injustice and unjustified threats to worker autonomy by coming to an understanding of the concept that serves the needs of its victims. Prevailing accounts analyze micromanagement from the perspective of the bottom line or the psychological state of the micromanager. By examining the phenomenon from the perspective of the micromanaged, we gain a better sense of the moral harms it presents. Because micromanagement raises deep questions about the nature of management and leadership, this project also affords an opportunity to revisit many perennial questions about leadership with a fresh lens.