Ideal bosses are scarce: in moments of frustration at work, we wish we had a better boss. We admire our friends who are fortunate to have cordial and understanding bosses. What are the characteristics of an ideal boss? Ideal bosses are normally found in ideal companies—firms that you are proud to work for

Today's Manager,  Dec-Jan, 2008  by Tan Chee Teik

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WHEN ASKED what our expectation of an ideal spouse is, we are full of ideas and expectations. We are more guarded when asked about our expectation of an ideal boss. This is perhaps because an ideal boss resides in Neverland.

If, on the other hand, we ask what kinds of bosses you wouldn't work for even if you are unemployed, listeners find it easy to provide a surge of views. They want to work for bosses who do not check their E-mails and voice mails. They prefer bosses who listen to their suggestions but do not interfere with what they do after office hours. They hate bosses who are quick tempered and often raise their voices when angry.

In a straw poll of about 30 administrative professionals, the majority feels that the ideal boss should be supportive. The other characteristics in descending order are: understanding, flexible, honest and ethical, motivating, and fair (See Table 1).

Being supportive means that the boss will take up new ideas suggested by the staff and when there is a problem, he will assist in solving the problem rather than looking for a scapegoat to take the blame. As a leader, the boss should shoulder the blame for any fault in his department.

Good bosses must be understanding. They know when the staff is overloaded with work and will distribute some of the tasks to other employees. They are empathetic to the problems faced by the staff both at work and at home. They treat the staff as a member of the same happy family.

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Angela Seow, an administrative professional, says: "An ideal boss should develop good relationship with the staff and is able to communicate well with them."

Good relationship can be built up if the bosses socialise with the staff outside office hours from time to time. Such activities can include more than one staff member and they give a chance for both parties to get to know each other better. Examples of such activities can be having a quiet dinner, playing a round of golf, listening to music at a lounge, or attending a concert together. You should treat your boss as friend and confidante. If you cannot stand his mannerisms, it is time to look for another job.

Employees prefer bosses who are flexible. Company rules are meant to be guidelines. Deadlines can be changed under unforeseen circumstances. Managers who practise flexibility in their work are more popular. There are many different ways to do a task, and it doesn't matter which way is adopted as long as the objective is maintained.

Many feel that bosses must be honest and ethical in all their dealings both within and outside the company. When they say something, they honour it. There is no need to put their words in writing. They do not smile with the staff and yet give them a poor report behind their backs.

Bosses must motivate their staff to achieve their targets. They praise the staff when a job is done well. They give small rewards for good work throughout the year and will often promote an employee when an opportunity arises rather than hiring an outsider to fill a vacancy. Motivation can be in the form of strokes from time to time rather than threats for mistakes made.

Dawn Lim of the Walt Disney Co Pte Ltd says: "A boss who is ready to praise will help to keep the staff motivated and they will work harder for the company. My current boss practises this and she makes me feel good and I willingly do work beyond my job scope. While this praising of workers is important, it is seldom practised by many supervisors."

Cynthia Chua, an administrator, says: "Good bosses should support teamwork and also look into the health of the workers."

Workers want their bosses to be fair. There should not be any favouritism in the department although favouring one staff member over another is a natural human flaw. Parents tend to favour one child over another although they are all in the same family.

Administrator Tee Wan Ching says: "A boss who has high emotional quotient is very important. The employees' working mood will be affected if the boss gets frustrated easily. Bosses should be able to communicate politely at all levels."

The ability to communicate well is a top factor to be a good boss. At S&T Daewoo in Busan, when the annual wage talks with the union failed, the Korean company locked out 450 workers. The workers started a sit-in which lasted for two weeks in the company cafeteria. The chairman of the company went on hunger strike in protest against the workers' action. He demanded dialogue with the union to resolve the situation but the workers walked out of the cafeteria instead.

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Others feel that a good boss must know each employee by name. This makes the employees feel valued. A caring boss will know some details about the employee's family especially the number of children in the family.

While empowerment is good, some bosses overdo this by offloading tasks to their workers simply because they are too lazy to do them.