--- title: "How NOT to lead geeks: essential tips from a management guru" description: The world of technology is full of immature management and poor leadership. Get some pointers about how NOT to lead geeks in this article. image: https://geekboss.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/AdobeStock_166575054-1-3.jpeg --- # How NOT to lead geeks [ By Matthew Stibbe ![Matthew Stibbe](https://app.hubspot.com/settings/avatar/c0fe13642b2329271b9ce0a5b41d744a) ](https://geekboss.com/blog/author/matthew-stibbe) Published 02/Oct/2017 Updated June 4 2026 ![Two children dressed up as engineers](https://geekboss.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/AdobeStock_166575054-1-3.jpeg?width=1600&height=1000&name=AdobeStock_166575054-1-3.jpeg) The world of technology is full of immature management and poor leadership. Get some pointers about how NOT to lead geeks in this article from Alexander Kjerulf. Alexander Kjerulf is in the category of people who wrote their own job description and then people took them seriously. The self-described Chief Happiness Officer worked on a ‘Happy People’ project at HP with me and I really like his [blog](http://positivesharing.com/). > “Happy geeks are effective geeks.” – Alexander Kjerulf Like me, he comes from an IT background. I think is why I enjoyed his post: [How NOT to lead geeks](http://positivesharing.com/2006/03/how-not-to-lead-geeks/) so much. [![Marketing Strategy foundations course CTA](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/289742/f5078ad8-43c6-493e-bdd4-7530d06591d3.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/289742/f5078ad8-43c6-493e-bdd4-7530d06591d3) ## Tips for bad management 1. **Downplay training** 2. **Give no recognition** (I used to write handwritten thank you letters to team members when products shipped, but I wished I had given more recognition generally.) 3. **Plan too much overtime** (I was very guilty of this back in the day) 4. **Use management-speak** (see my old posts [The Devil’s Marketing Dictionary Part One](https://www.articulatemarketing.com/blog/the-devils-marketing-dictionary), [Part Two](https://www.articulatemarketing.com/blog/the-devils-marketing-dictionary) and [Part Three](https://www.articulatemarketing.com/blog/the-devils-marketing-dictionary)) 5. **Try to be smarter than the geeks** 6. **Act inconsistently** 7. **Ignore the geeks** 8. **Make decisions without consulting them** 9. **Don’t give them tools** 10. **Forget that geeks are creative workers** ## Find the right language Another common problem in my experience is “two peoples divided by a common language”.  I wrote about [Geeks: how to write for a non-technical audience](https://geekboss.com/blog/write-for-a-non-technical-audience) and (in the opposite sense) [How to write like a hacker](https://geekboss.com/blog/how-to-write-like-a-hacker). Just as management-speak is inspires cynicism in geeks, techno-speak inspires fear in managers. A bit of empathy on both sides can make a huge difference. [![How to choose an agency for your new website](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/289742/aab369e3-a371-48eb-a47f-85895833e378.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/289742/aab369e3-a371-48eb-a47f-85895833e378) --- Share [![Share on linkedin](https://geekboss.com/hubfs/raw_assets/public/GeekBoss%20theme/images/icons/linkedin.svg) ](http://www.linkedin.com/shareArticle?mini=true&url=https://geekboss.com/blog/lead-geeks&utm_medium=social&utm_source=linkedin) [![Share on facebook](https://geekboss.com/hubfs/raw_assets/public/GeekBoss%20theme/images/icons/facebook.svg) ](http://www.facebook.com/share.php?u=https://geekboss.com/blog/lead-geeks&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook) ![Copy to clipboard](https://geekboss.com/hubfs/raw_assets/public/GeekBoss%20theme/images/icons/copy.svg) ## Related articles ![A manager having a coffee with another employee](https://geekboss.com/hs-fs/hubfs/pexels-august-de-richelieu-4427910%20(1).jpg?width=800&height=500&name=pexels-august-de-richelieu-4427910%20(1).jpg) ### [Managers vs Entrepreneurs](https://geekboss.com/blog/managers-vs-entrepreneurs) A while back, I asked if you were a Looney Tunes person or a Disney person. (Clue: Disney people like rhyme, Looney Tunes people like... By Matthew Stibbe [Entrepreneurship](https://geekboss.com/blog/tag/entrepreneurship) ![Zork I advert - 'Your greatest challenge lies ahead - and downwards'](https://geekboss.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Zork-cover-1.jpeg?width=800&height=500&name=Zork-cover-1.jpeg) ### [How GeekBoss got its name and the ‘muddle’ of coding for Zork](https://geekboss.com/blog/coding-zork) Readers may know that I started my career in computer games. Instead of enjoying ‘the end of history’, back in the 90s, I was CEO of ... 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