<p>Don't get along with your boss? Your job performance may actually improve if the two of you can come to grips with the poor relationship!<br /><br /></p>.<p>A new study led by Michigan State University business scholars found that workers are more motivated if they and their supervisors see eye-to-eye about a bad relationship than if they have different views about their relationship.<br /><br />"Seeing eye-to-eye about the employee-supervisor relationship is equally, if not more important than the actual quality of the relationship," said Fadel Matta, lead investigator on the study and a management researcher in MSU's Broad College of Business.<br /><br />Past research suggests workers and their bosses often have differing views about the quality of their relationship.<br /><br />Matta and his fellow researchers set out to examine whether that affects actual work engagement, or motivation.<br /><br />According to the MSU-led study of 280 employees and their bosses, motivation suffered when an employee believed he or she had a good relationship with the boss but the boss saw it differently.<br /><br />The finding held when the flip side was true and the boss believed the relationship was good but the subordinate did not.<br /><br />The two were surveyed separately, meaning the boss did not necessarily know how the employee felt about him or her, and vice versa.<br /><br />Interestingly, employee motivation was higher (and the employee was more apt to go above and beyond his or her basic job duties) when the worker and supervisor saw eye-to-eye about the relationship, even when it was poor.<br /><br />The study examined a wide range of employees – from cashiers to senior managers – in a host of industries, including automotive, retail and financial services.<br /><br />It's nearly impossible for a supervisor to have a good relationship with every employee - there's only so much time and so many resources a boss can invest towards that goal - but at the same time it's human inclination to want everyone to like you, Matta said.<br /><br />Ultimately, it's important that supervisors and workers don't misrepresent how they feel about their relationship.<br /><br />The findings are published in the Academy of Management Journal. </p>
<p>Don't get along with your boss? Your job performance may actually improve if the two of you can come to grips with the poor relationship!<br /><br /></p>.<p>A new study led by Michigan State University business scholars found that workers are more motivated if they and their supervisors see eye-to-eye about a bad relationship than if they have different views about their relationship.<br /><br />"Seeing eye-to-eye about the employee-supervisor relationship is equally, if not more important than the actual quality of the relationship," said Fadel Matta, lead investigator on the study and a management researcher in MSU's Broad College of Business.<br /><br />Past research suggests workers and their bosses often have differing views about the quality of their relationship.<br /><br />Matta and his fellow researchers set out to examine whether that affects actual work engagement, or motivation.<br /><br />According to the MSU-led study of 280 employees and their bosses, motivation suffered when an employee believed he or she had a good relationship with the boss but the boss saw it differently.<br /><br />The finding held when the flip side was true and the boss believed the relationship was good but the subordinate did not.<br /><br />The two were surveyed separately, meaning the boss did not necessarily know how the employee felt about him or her, and vice versa.<br /><br />Interestingly, employee motivation was higher (and the employee was more apt to go above and beyond his or her basic job duties) when the worker and supervisor saw eye-to-eye about the relationship, even when it was poor.<br /><br />The study examined a wide range of employees – from cashiers to senior managers – in a host of industries, including automotive, retail and financial services.<br /><br />It's nearly impossible for a supervisor to have a good relationship with every employee - there's only so much time and so many resources a boss can invest towards that goal - but at the same time it's human inclination to want everyone to like you, Matta said.<br /><br />Ultimately, it's important that supervisors and workers don't misrepresent how they feel about their relationship.<br /><br />The findings are published in the Academy of Management Journal. </p>