My ChatBot Boss is better than your real boss
Photo by Austin Distel on Unsplash
Over 50% the people clicking on this article don't like their current manager. Several Gallup surveys support this statement. The 50% that already agree to this headline are already looking to buy a ChatBot Boss. For the other half that are happy with your manager, you think there is no way AI can replace my human manager. You are likely right, but there would still be things that your manager could learn of a ChatBot boss.
People management done well is complex. This article is not intended to highlight an actual argument to replace all managers. There are many things like showing vulnerability and building trust a ChatBot can't replace. Often, the more minor things we do not focus on can make a difference. The advantage of a bot is it can keep consistent with many of those small things, and run things concurrently.
Here are five things that a ChatBot boss could do that all managers could learn to do.
One. It would check-in regularly. Across many teams, your day to day work does not include your manager. You carry out your activities with the team and other teams. Only communicating with your manager for 1:1s, getting assigned tasks or when something goes wrong. A chatbot would do one more thing; it would check in on you randomly to say 'hi' and see how your day is. A high frequency of conversations can often outweigh low frequency with a more profound quality. One of the core values employees want to feel in an organisation is to be seen. You are not a number but a valued member of the team.
Not only will the chatbot say 'hi', but it will also remember your previous conversations and ask about that event you had last week. Or follow up on your workload stress from 3 days ago. It can also provide an opening for a conversation they had on their mind but were waiting for you not to be so busy.
Two. It will listen to you without interruption. After all, it is a bot. It doesn't have the creativity to provide ideas and close off your creative thinking. It will listen objectively and ask open-ended questions. The questions wouldn't even be hard to train. Michael Bungay Stanier's book The Coaching Habit outlines seven essential questions. The seven questions keep you focused on listening, which helps the team member solve their problems.
To listen without offering your ideas when coaching is challenging. Even some of the questions we ask are intended to lead the team member to a conclusion. Taking a page from the chatbots limited library would go a long way.
"What is the real challenge here for you?"
Three. It would be great at connecting you to the right people. Most organisations have so many employees. As social as one can be, it is still challenging to know people in the organisation and what they are doing or good at. Often I find a team member needs help with something that I know I am not the optimal person to help with. It takes time to find the right person, or it is too hard, so their ask hits a dead-end.
A Chatbot would easily crawl the employee database, profiles, awards, public forum posts and identify one or even a top 3 list of names to connect to. The productivity and knowledge sharing across the organisation would benefit and save hours in the process.
Four. It would recognise more of your work. There are not enough hours for any manager to be across their work and the minor and significant wins each employee is doing. Recognition is another primary value team members need to feel. The difference recognition can make when a team member feels valued is significant.
Would it still feel like micro-management if a bot was watching your work? Calling out your wins? How about "They are some great slides you have built" or "Your work output is on fire right now" to brighten up your day.
Over 91% of HR professionals believe that recognition and rewards make employees more likely to stay. - Gallup
Five. It would be factual without favourites. Whether you are a man or a woman, you like trance or rock. The ChatBot is not factoring that in its primary function to support you. It doesn't build friendships that can lead to bias. It shouldn't have a built-in bias. Its purpose is to support you and help you grow. When there is feedback to give, it can provide it directly measuring its success by helping you get better.
It doesn't have any agendas that are self-serving or serving their inner circle. The focus on unbiased leadership today is the highest it has ever been. Many studies prove that withholding feedback or sharing selectively can be damaging and harm productivity.
In Summary, with the many benefits a ChatBot Boss provides, we could take some lessons and improve our engagement with our team members. ChatBots could also learn a thing or two about building trust and human connection. Soon, we may see our managers equipped with assistant manager ChatBots and you won't be able to tell the difference when the Bot is checking in or the manager.
Opinions expressed are solely my own and do not represent the views or opinions of my employer.