What To Do When You Have a Poor Leader

What do you do when your boss is a poor leader?

Because let’s face it, not every leader we work for is brilliant.

But even if your boss isn’t the best, you still have the power to lead your team well.

In this episode of The Leader’s Kitbag, I’m sharing three practical ways you can manage up when the person above you isn’t leading effectively.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• How to clarify the bigger picture to help your boss prioritise
• Ways to proactively seek feedback, even in a feedback vacuum
• Why sharing wins and team success makes your boss (and you) look good

Managing up isn’t about manipulation.

It’s about leading with intent, creating clarity for your team, and making life easier for everyone, including yourself.

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Podcast Transcript: What To Do When You Have a Poor Leader

If your boss is a poor leader, it’s undoubtedly harder for you to lead your team well, but it’s still absolutely possible.

There’s always something we can control or influence, and that’s where we need to focus in order to be the most effective leaders we can be for our teams.

The best leaders and managers are skilled at managing both downwards and upwards.

And that’s exactly what we’re talking about in today’s episode of The Leaders Kit Bag.

Managing up isn’t about office politics or personal ambition. It’s a core leadership skill. And if you’re reporting to someone who’s not a great leader, here are three practical tips to help you lead effectively despite that challenge.

1. Clarify the bigger picture.

When you’re handed tasks or targets, ask respectful, clarifying questions that demonstrate support and keep the team aligned. For example:

• “To make sure the team stays focused and delivers what you ultimately need, can you help me understand how this fits into the bigger picture?”

• “What’s the outcome you’re aiming for here, and why is it important?”

These types of questions help your boss sharpen their thinking and naturally guide better prioritisation.

2. Proactively seek feedback.

Poor leaders often don’t offer regular or meaningful feedback. If you’re in that kind of vacuum, you can still get what you need by asking smartly framed questions. Try:

• “Can I just check? Here’s what we’ve done so far: are we on track?”

• “When you think about how we delivered that objective, what’s one thing we could do better next time to make your life easier?”

Even these simple prompts can create a feedback loop where there wasn’t one before.

3. Share your team’s wins.

If your boss isn’t great at noticing team success, bring it to them.

Frame it in a way that benefits them – after all, if they look good, your life gets easier.

Highlight things like:

• Targets hit

• Positive feedback received

• Team development and training achievements

And here’s a bonus tip: if you want the recognition to cascade down to your team, ask your boss (when they’re in a good mood) to drop by and say thank you, or even just to send a short email of praise.

If that feels unlikely, do what marketers do with customer reviews: write it yourself, and ask them to edit it in their tone and send it.

It still lands well with the team and gets the message across.

So there you go, three tips for managing your boss more effectively.

If you found this episode useful,  subscribe to my Leaders Kit Bag newsletter for more leadership tips and resources.

Look after yourself and those you’ve got the privilege and responsibility to lead.

Until next time, lead on.