It can be difficult to air your complaints to your boss when your complaint is the air from your boss. If he is a friendly, open, and responsive leader who truly listens to the staff, you should not have much of a problem. However, if he is a boss who not only has questionable breath, but also questionable managerial and interpersonal skills, it is difficult to give him any kind of feedback.
Nonetheless, if anything is going to change, one approach is for someone to talk to him. With this option, it should only be one person, as this is a matter that calls for real privacy.
In such a meeting, the best approach is to use questions rather than conclusions, meaning that you do not just say, "You have dragon breath." Rather, since bad breath can be a sign of any number of problems, from hygiene to illness, you can ask him if he is feeling well, as several of you have noticed this specific problem. If you approach him from the standpoint of care and concern rather than criticism, you can have breathtaking results.
A second option is an anonymous note. However, if your relationship with the boss calls for anonymity when giving feedback, the work atmosphere may have more problems than merely his breath.
|