Management Practices: Why Good Intentions Are Not Enough

A manager answers messages late at night to show commitment. The team understands that they must be reachable at all hours. Another manager corrects every document to help employees improve. They see it as a lack of trust.

In both cases, no one means any harm. But it is what the team experiences day to day, not what the manager meant, that shapes their stress, motivation and engagement.

In companies in Madagascar, where it is not always easy to contradict a superior, this gap can remain invisible for a long time: the manager hears no criticism and concludes that all is well.

Where does this gap come from?

• Managers judge themselves by their intentions, while teams judge them by their actions: each side starts from different evidence.
• Hierarchy amplifies everything: a casual remark or a short message can carry far more weight than intended.
• Spontaneous feedback is rare: few employees dare tell their manager what weighs on them in the way they work.
• Habits end up seeming normal: an established way of working is no longer questioned, even when it weighs on the team.

Situations where intention and experience diverge

• “I give people autonomy” can be experienced as “I am on my own with my problems.”
• “I am demanding because I believe in them” can be experienced as “nothing is ever good enough.”
• “My door is always open” can be experienced as “it is up to me to take the first step, and I don’t dare.”
• “I protect the team by keeping some information to myself” can be experienced as “we are never told anything.”

Why self-assessment is not enough

Asking managers how they see themselves is useful, but it shows only part of the picture. Asking the team directly, face to face, does not always produce an honest answer either: it is hard to criticize the person who evaluates your work.

The goal is not to single out bad managers. It is to give them information they are missing, so they can adjust their practices. A gap is not a penalty; it is a starting point.

Closing the gap day to day

• Explain your intentions: saying why you are asking for something prevents many misinterpretations.
• Clarify expectations: for example, make clear that a message sent in the evening does not call for an immediate reply.
• Regularly ask what helps and what gets in the way, then show what has changed as a result.
• Watch your own reflexes in tense moments, when old habits take over.

Do you know today how your teams actually experience management practices in your company?

Measuring experience to act on facts

Irobii helps companies in Madagascar gather their teams’ experience through anonymized assessments. The results, presented collectively, allow leadership and managers to see where the gaps are and decide where to act, without pointing the finger at anyone.

Get an objective view of how your teams feel.