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Misapplying Boundary Management

When should you not use Boundary Management?

There are several areas that come to mind where this kind of management style may not work well.  If is is used in the wrong way or for the wrong issue, it may actually cause more problems.

When the issue really only has one answer: Some issues may only have one solution and the restrictions are too great to allow much flexibility.  This may include issues like work hours or job duties.  I would not suggest that you allow too much flexibility in junior staff related to work hours.  For support personnel, they need to be on-site when the workforce is there.  Adjusting work hours may not be an option.

When the staff does not have enough knowledge to be creative: Sometimes the staff you are working with just do not have enough experience to work under a boundary system.  they need to be told exactly what to do and exactly how to do it.  Until they gain some wisdom and perspective, allowing them to bounce around within the boundaries can be unproductive.

When everyone is watching: This method may not be good for mission critical and time sensitive issues.  Getting the job done quick and right may apply to just about everything, but some items are critical and must be perfect.  Restricting the target to something exact is called for.

When the people are too creative: You may need to revisit the boundaries when working with very creative teams.  They could think of things that don’t violate the boundaries, but do not achieve the result within “unspoken” guidelines.