What triggers micromanagement impulses? Judith E. Glaser, author of The DNA of Leadership, says there are three main causes. The first is an extreme detail orientation (also known as perfectionism). "This kind of manager will always need to stick in refinements," says Glaser. Second: "Some managers really just love to micromanage; that is, he or she believes he is the center of the universe." This persona is also known as the Diva, says Glaser. And third: "When the manager is nervous about results, it can trigger micromanagement."

Meditate on Glaser's third type, probably the most common cause, and suddenly, the reasons for the epidemic become clear. For 10 years, management slots have been under attack, as organizations have trimmed budgets. When anxiety over that business reality gets out of control, an easy upshot is micromanaging. "Insecurity is pandemic, too, among managers," says Trestman. "There are strong pressures for productivity. Many managers have never been trained how to manage. These managers feel a lot of anxiety. Most micromanagers frankly feel they are doing what they need to do to produce quality work."

That's the stumbling block facing an employee who feels micromanaged and who suffers the resulting problems (poor morale, lack of creativity, no enthusiasm about the job). When a boss feels he or she is doing only what must be done, where can change arise?

Philadelphia employment lawyer and human resources specialist Robin Bond draws upon her personal experience from a past job. "I know about micromanagers. At an in-house counsel position where I worked, I had to photocopy every document I produced for review by my boss before it went out. Everything. She read everything and always had comments and changes. I had to learn to build a lot of time into every workday just to communicate with her. As long as I communicated with her, she was happy, even if I wasn't getting much done."