"When Nobody’s Watching, But Everyone’s Controlling"

What if the real micromanagement isn’t coming from managers at all?

In the past few years, something shifted in tech leadership.
The org charts got flatter.
The talk got louder:

Some called it “Founder Mode.”
The idea: strip away the layers. Focus on product. Speed things up. Let the work speak for itself.

On paper, it sounds empowering.
In practice? It often creates a void.

Because when you remove managers, but still expect performance, you don’t remove oversight.
You just move it somewhere else.
Usually higher up, and more erratic.

Suddenly, senior leaders are dropping into the weeds.
Commenting in PRs.
Asking “why’s this taking so long?”
Changing priorities mid-sprint.
Offering “feedback” that’s really a directive.

There’s no relationship. No context. No trust.
Just pressure.

And the worst part?
The people on the ground don’t know who’s watching, or when.

So they get quiet. They play safe.
They stop pushing back—because what’s the point?

Founder Mode promises less micromanagement.
But often it just replaces consistent support with unpredictable control.

It removes the people who know how to stay close without suffocating—
and replaces them with people who hover from above, then swoop in without warning.

If you’ve ever feared being a micromanager,
know this:
The absence of good management doesn’t free teams.
It leaves them exposed.

Until next time,
Dermot
​The Messy Middle

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