He didn't try to be friends with any of his employees. He was always friendly, but made sure that the employees had their own space and he had his own space. He only went to happy hour type events with them when he was expressly invited by several people on his team. He wanted them to feel like their breaks and downtime were their own without having to be all buddy buddy awkward with the boss.

"I'm not like a regular boss, I'm a cool boss." New manager seeks tips! - managing supervisor | Ask MetaFilter Saturday, February 1, 2014 @ 9:00pm