Here’s an odd, confusing, and thrilling observation I’ve made:

When I’m away from my team members, they do a better job than when I’m around.

Yep, having me out of the way increases productivity. They do more, the clients are happier, and we make more money.

How Employees Respond to Greater Freedom

What’s that about?

I’m no scientist, so I don’t have a handy explanation based on research. I just know what I think I’ve witnessed (from afar).

Ethan Bernstein, on the other hand, is a scientist. He’s a Harvard Business School professor and researcher.

He did a study in a mobile phone factory in China (sure, it’s not a law firm) and found that the workers were more productive when not being observed by management. He believes that workers employ approaches not yet sanctioned by management when no one is looking. Those approaches work better than the officially sanctioned techniques.

Clearly, the workers feel free to take their responsibilities and run with them when they’re not being watched. Under supervision, they feel obligated to do things in the approved manner.

The Other Benefits of Letting Go

I think the improvements I’ve observed go beyond just modifying the approach. I think our people feel even greater ownership in the work when no one is watching. It belongs to them instead of us, and they know they’ve got to make it work because there’s no one backing them up. That’s just my personal theory.

Regardless of the explanation, I firmly believe that your team will rise to the occasion when you’re away. You’ll see it when you spend the day (or the week) away in court. You’ll see it when you’re off on vacation or dealing with a family crisis.

Don’t micromanage. Train them, encourage them, support them, and let them do their thing. Having a team that functions even better without you is a very good thing.