How to Tell Your Boss They're Wrong

They're above you in the food chain, and they might not appreciate being outsmarted by a "subordinate." So, do you risk telling them about their mistake? Or do you bite your tongue and leave the company to sort out the mess?

If your organization's wellbeing and your own integrity matter to you, it's important to conquer your fears and to speak up. It may feel unnatural and risky, and it may go against your office culture, but, when you're graceful and adept, you can help your boss to put things right without upsetting anyone.

This article and video guide you through some of the most important points to consider when you have to tell your bosses they're wrong.

How to Give Feedback to Your Manager

It can be difficult to predict how your boss will react to being told that they're wrong. It can amount to insubordination for some managers, but others value their people's opinions and appreciate being challenged. Some leaders even expect you to do it.

The key is to do it in the right way, so that your manager doesn't "lose face." After all, no one likes to be told that they're wrong. Get it right, and you could give your professional standing a boost. Just bear in mind the following eight tips.

1. Do Your Homework

Ensure your boss has actually made an error before raising the issue.

• Remember that they may have more information than you and could be right.
• Double-check the issue to avoid appearing out of touch.

Develop at least one possible solution to offer.

• Support your suggestions with data to provide insights your boss may not have.
• Having a remedy ready demonstrates initiative and credibility, and helps shift the focus to solutions.

2. Check Your Motives

Consider whether it's really worth mentioning the mistake.

• Let minor matters drop to avoid appearing moaning, critical or undermining.
• Avoid speaking up just to be contrary or nitpicky.
• If there's a solid business reason or a risk to your boss's reputation, it may be worth raising the concern.

3. Time It Right

Choose the right moment to address your boss's mistake.

• Don't expect a warm welcome by barging into their office or raising the issue in a team meeting.
• Allow your boss to choose a time when they can give you their full attention.
• If an immediate and critical problem arises, speak up publicly but remember it’s still your boss’s responsibility to decide how to proceed.

4. Show Respect and Humility

Speak to your boss privately whenever possible.

• Avoid publicizing the issue and embarrassing your boss.
• If privacy isn't an option, raise the issue respectfully without challenging the chain of command.
• Start by asking permission to discuss a difficult issue.
• Approach the situation with maturity, empathy and humility.
• Stay professional and focus on the business impact rather than personal interests or failures.

5. Mind Your Language

Use careful and respectful language when addressing mistakes.

• Avoid words like "wrong" and "mistake" and an "I told you so" tone.
• Use polite and tactful language to avoid appearing as if you're out to score a win.
• Lead your boss into a problem-solving session rather than an argument.
• Help them buy into your ideas without taking offense or losing face.

6. Escalate Your Concern Cautiously

Be cautious with whistleblowing as it can have serious consequences.

• Justify escalating your concern only if there are serious implications.
• Test your thoughts with the HR department before approaching your boss’s superior.
• Control your emotions and moderate your language to protect your reputation.
• If the issue is especially serious or illegal, put your concerns in writing to cover yourself.

7. Admit Your Own Mistake

Acknowledge and correct your own mistakes if you find you were wrong.

• Take the correction with good grace and, if appropriate, offer an apology.
• Accepting your mistakes gracefully can maintain and even improve your relationship with your boss.

8. Let Go

Accept that your boss might proceed despite your concerns.

• If they decide to press ahead, bow out gracefully and avoid raising the issue again.
• In some cases, make a note that you raised the concern for future reference.

Manager Feedback Example

By summoning up the courage to let your boss know when they're wrong, you could prevent a disaster, save a reputation, or protect a career – which could make you a more valuable employee. Speaking up might feel uncomfortable, but it's important to do it, because unchallenged authority can lead to catastrophe.

In the aviation industry, for example, safety depends on good communication within the cockpit. Flight engineers must be prepared to tell their captains when they're wrong, just as captains need to listen to their subordinates.

When researchers found that entrenched hierarchies were preventing this from happening, the industry transformed its procedures. [1] It encouraged subordinates to question their superiors and required crews to carry out post-flight debriefs to discuss what went wrong, what went right, and what could have been handled better.

Over two decades, safety errors by humans rather than machines dropped by 50 percent [2], and most captains now reject cockpit hierarchies in favor of open, two-way communication with their colleagues. [3]

Why It's Important to Say "Stop"

In contrast, a 2013 study of the U.S. healthcare industry found that 440,000 Americans die each year as a result of preventable medical mistakes, like administering the wrong medication or operating on the wrong part of the body. [4]

Some of these disastrous outcomes happen because errors tend to be handled less well in operating theaters than in the aviation industry. [3]

Nurses don't always raise concerns with surgeons, and surgeons don't always listen to anesthetists, for example. "Bosses" are generally deferred to and junior colleagues often hold back from voicing their concerns for fear of being ostracized or punished. [5]

But you become part of the problem when you don't speak up about a boss's mistakes. [6] And then you're complicit in the outcome, too.