>A competent manager might argue that it would be a better use of his time to delegate to his resource

the first sign of all the bad managers i've met - s/he delegates. S/he aren't competent enough to perform his/her duties (including and especially - taking decisions) and covers it as delegation.

Status reports are second worst - they mean that the manager doesn't have enough competence/skills/interest in being continuously aware of what happens in his team. Frequently the team responds in kind :)