Which of the 5 Types of Bosses Could You Be?

By: Elizabeth Lavis

6 Min Quiz

Image: Musketeer / DigitalVision / Getty Images

About This Quiz

Every boss has their own awesome personality.

Some are big and bold, the visionary types who are super excited about the big picture and can't wait to involve you in all of their cool ideas. Others have a soft spot for their employees and are truly invested in their happiness. These bosses will hold pizza parties, dry tears and bend over backward to make sure that their employees are totally happy.

Some bosses want to see results, period. These Type A leaders don't care how the watch is made; they just want to know what time it is. Others not only want to know how the watch was made but where the material was sourced. These bosses get down and dirty in the details, and you can bet that they can do the job of any of their employees with their eyes closed. Some bosses are always on the clock. These are the folks who wake up in the middle of the night to check their email and are coming up with department-wide initiatives at 9 pm on a Friday night. They need work and purpose like oxygen!

You would be hard-pressed to find a boss anywhere that didn't fall into one of these five types at heart. Which one are you deep down?

It's 9 am and nobody has arrived for your Monday morning staff meeting. How do you react?

Lock the door and write them all up for tardiness.

Give them a break--it's Monday morning.
Send them a text, Facebook message and email asking where they are.

Reschedule the meeting for 7 pm that evening.

Your Monday morning kick-off meeting has started, but your team are all making small talk about their weekends. What's your move?

Make a mental note that none of them mentioned checking their email over the weekend.

Join right in! Jillian's party was super fun!
Nip it in the bud and get down to business.

Think about new ways to monitor them during their working hours.

One of your employees asks if she can make a coffee run for the department, but that would eat up 20 minutes of her morning. Do you let her?

Absolutely not

Sure, as long as she counts it as her lunch.
As long as she gets all of her work done, no problem.

Totally! You'll even kick in for some donuts.

You hear a disturbing bit of gossip that one of your star employees is thinking of leaving. What do you do?

Do frantic research on all of your competitors and come up with a list of all of their flaws.

Be very hurt and confused, then order a pinball machine for the office to make it more fun.
Confront them directly, then ask what you could do to make them stay.

This is old news, you've already learned about it weeks ago from combing through your employees' emails.

One of your flakier employees asks you to leave work early and offers a totally implausible excuse. How do you respond?

Tell them that they can leave, but they'll be docked pay.

Let them go. It MIGHT be true, right?
Give them a warning that if this behavior continues, they'll be fired.

Rattle off a list of all of their absences from the last year.

The company has finally sprung for an assistant for your department. What is the most desirable work attribute in a candidate?

On call 24/7

Someone who can fit in with the team dynamic
Accurate and speedy work

Someone who can report back to you if others are misbehaving

You want to get your employees gifts for a job well done. What do you give them?

Coffee mugs so they can stay fueled and focused

A fun group outing to play laser tag
A day off

Gift cards for Target

Two of your employees are dating. According to the Employee Handbook, this is a big no-no. What's your move?

Ignore it unless their performance drops

Congratulate them, but tell them that they need to keep their relationship low-key at work.
Transfer one to a different department.

Tell HR and let them deal with it.

It's time for a department-wide lunch. What's on the menu?

Baked pasta

Artisan sandwiches
Pizza

Subs and cold cuts

Uh-oh. One of your employees is the department bully, but they are also your best revenue generator. What do you do?

Reprimand them, but not plan on doing much else

Fire them immediately.
Adjust their role so that they don't need to interact with other employees.

Use them as a department snitch.

What do you consider your best leadership quality to be?

I never take a day off.

I'm the nicest person you'll ever meet.
I know how to get things done.

I am super involved with my team.

There seems to be a flu epidemic hitting your office and everyone is coming down sick, including you. How do you handle it?

Power through because there's work to be done

Stay home and watch Netflix.
Work from home.

Stay home, but check in with your assistant over the course of the day to make sure that everyone is working.

Important clients are coming in to visit. How do you prepare?

Pull several all-nighters to make sure that everything is perfect.

Ask your team to put on their A-game.
Have a list of the top three ways your company has helped them.

Have a detailed spreadsheet of all of your transactions with the client.

As a boss, is it ever okay to play favorites?

Yes. If someone's work ethic is better, it's okay to favor them.

No way
Absolutely

No. Everyone is a unique and important cog in the machine.

What is your philosophy on your employees taking a few minutes out of the day to check their personal email or social media channels?

They can check those things during their breaks.

Sure, I trust them.
As long as they get their work done, I don't care.

No way. Internet usage not related to work is prohibited.

All employees have their quirks and faults. Which negative quality is a deal-breaker for you?

Laziness

Bullying
Insubordination

Cheating

Do you require your employees to sign in and out of the office?

Only at the start and end of the day

Nope, they're not kids.
I'd prefer not to, but I have to.

Yes: at the start, finish and for lunches

You are butting heads with someone from a different department who is your equal. How do you handle it?

Challenge their work ethic as compared to yours

Invite the other person out to lunch to talk it out.
Get a mediator to find a solution that is suitable for everyone.

Document every interaction and prove that you were always in the right.

What is the best way for you to motivate your employees to do a good job?

Hang up motivational posters everywhere.

Give them tons of perks, like days off, pizza parties and fun outings.
Have an open door policy and treat everyone fairly.

Compliment them often in their reviews.

A valuable client complains about one of your employees. How do you handle the situation?

Take responsibility for the employee's actions and reprimand them later.

Defend the employee and ask if it might have been a misunderstanding.
Apologize and ask how it could be made right.

Identify what happened and set up an intensive training session to make sure it never happens again.

One of your employees calls in sick, but you see pictures of them at the beach on Facebook. What do you do?

Give them a warning and let them know that if they ever pull a stunt like that again, you'll fire them.

Let it go. You're not happy about it, but who hasn't flaked out on work sometimes?
Call them and confront them.

Send them an email and cc HR.

Which famous television boss is totally you?

Leslie Knope

Michael Scott
Don Draper

Lorelai Gilmore

You had to call a super early breakfast meeting and your team is not pleased. That's okay, because you know how to make it up to them! What do you do?

Bring in assorted danishes and coffee.

There would never be a need to have a super early breakfast meeting.
Put an extra bonus in their paycheck for the week.

Give them a longer lunch break that day.

If your leadership style was personified as an animal, which animal would it be?

Prarie Dog

Dolphin
Lion

Giraffe

You get called into HR on the accusation of bullying one of your employees. How do you respond?

State your case as eloquently as possible and hint that the employee might not be a good fit for your department.

Promise to do better, then buy the employee flowers and a gift certificate.
Reflect on your direct leadership style and try to do better.

Provide evidence that you were not bullying the employee.

Check out the movie bosses listed here. Which one is the absolute worst?

Frank Shirley, "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation"

Miranda Priestley, "The Devil Wears Prada"
Bill Lumbergh, "Office Space"

Darth Vader, "Star Wars"

When it comes to your friend group, which title best defines your role?

The Canceller of Plans

The Soother of Hurt Feelings
The Giver of Solid Advice

The Epic Gossip

What is your philosophy on mental health days?

I don't understand them.

They are totally necessary.
They count as personal time.

If it's not physical, you should not call in sick.

Your employees team up to get you a gift, and it's just what you have always wanted. What is it?

A smartwatch

A gift certificate for a fancy restaurant
A power bank for your laptop

A mug that says "greatest boss ever"

Finally, what kind of boss do you think you would really turn out to be?

One that's always on the clock

One that really gets my staff
One that can get stuff done

One that can do any job

5 Minute Quiz 5 Min

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