Prove to your reports that you are willing (and able) to take a bullet for them.

If you have direct reports for whom you would not take a bullet, you shouldn't have them working for you!

Selling out your underlings is a great way to garner major negative points. People pay attention, and if they see you passing the buck, avoiding clear responsibility, you will have earned the same from your reports.

I saw this on joelonsoftware.com.

It's billed as a "field guide to developers". How to hire and retain good software developers. How to make sure that you are on the good side of those who make the company's products real.

Joel Spolsky makes the argument that you need to treat people with respect, and in fact, it's in your best interest to treat your software developers as if they are important to the company, and not just interchangeable cogs.

He points out that if you want to get the best people, you need to sell your company right from the start - during the interview - by demonstrating that they will be treated with dignity and respect, that they are not just glorified factory workers.

Resources for dealing with a farked manager. This is a work in progress, obviously.