The Happy Burro

(first in a series titled Issues Managers Face in the Workplace)

If you have ever managed people, a project team, even a monthly birthday event planning committee, you most likely had to deal with a problem employee. The one who habitually shows up late, misses key deadlines, ignores emails, disrupts meetings, spreads productivity-reducing rumors - you get the idea.

WHAT IS THE PROBLEM?

The first action you need to take is deciding if there is a problem at all. Ask yourself these questions:

1. How did I get this information? Observation? From a colleague? Another employee? A customer?
2. How credible is the source?
3. Is this a routine occurrence or isolated incident?

Notice there is not an option to ignore the problem. Yes, you are a busy manager. These difficult workplace situations are part of the manager job description, near the bottom, right before “all other duties as assigned.”

STANCE OF CURIOSITY

How you approach the issue with your employee is critical. You do have options.

1. Come down hard on the employee, accuse them of subterfuge, and scare them straight
2. Ignore the issue and maybe it will go away
3. Find out more information by asking some questions

I am sure you are familiar with the first two options. What about the third? Taking a stance of curiosity will allow you to uncover the intent and motivation behind the behavior. There are typically more than two sides to every story. Everybody makes mistakes. Even executives like Stanley Bing! At least he admits to them. Keeping curious until you have enough information to make a decision is important. Managing people is not a popularity contest. It is a respect contest. You need to respect your team, and they should be able to respect you.

I AM NOT CONVINCED

Ok, you find out you do have a problem with one of your people. Time to have a chat with them. If this is a first time incident, don’t make too big of a deal out of the meeting.

1. In private, in your office
2. No, you most likely do not need HR with you (though if the problem becomes habitual, you may)
3. Start off with something like, “Help me understand…”
   1. “Help me understand why you haven’t checked email in three days.”
   2. “Help me understand why ABC customer is so upset with the service you recently provided.”
   3. “Help me understand why you didn’t let anyone else give input at the last design meeting.”
4. Listen and do not roll your eyes, sigh or otherwise appear anything but 100% intent on listening to their side of the story
5. Review what you think you heard by restating it back to your employee
6. Discuss the outcome of what happened due to the employee’s actions
7. Ask their help in how best to remedy the situation

FOLLOW UP

Once you have completed your meeting and gone back to work, be sure to follow up with your employee.

1. Let them know when you have noticed a positive change in their behavior
2. Ensure others that brought the issue to your attention know that you are working to fix the problem
3. Do not hold the issue against the employee - this is hard - but lose the bias

__________

Want more on how to handle conflicts in the workplace? Check out this post from Steve Roesler at All Things Workplace!

Read more on setting up your team for success (and thus avoiding a lot of unnecessary conflict) in this post from lifehack.org!

Joe Raasch :: Dec.18.2007 :: Change Management, Leadership, Performance Management :: 5 Comments »

The past fiew weeks we’ve been discussing some year-end work for managers to get prepared for the New Year. Here is the series:

The Management Year-End Series

1. Learning from the mistakes of previous years
2. Setting SMART goals for your team
3. Show you are committed to making this team work
4. Stellar development plans for everyone
5. Becoming a net exporter of talent for your organization
6. How to develop a succession plan for your department
7. The best plan for onboarding a new employee

What’s Next

I’ll be starting a series titled “Managing People: Issues, Challenges, Rewards” that will run through year-end. Some topics to look forward to:

• The Generation Gap - Does Your Letter Matter?
• Are Helicopter Parents For Real?
• What Happens When Everyone Says Yes? Or No?
• How To Handle a Problem Employee
• Rewards
• Employee Engagement
• Laying Off Staff

If there are any additional topics you’d like me to cover, please let me know!

Thought Leadership

Here are a few thought leaders you need to put on your regular reading regimen. The best part is these experts are not just writers or researchers; they are practitioners as well.

• Jim Stroup writes on the strategic role of Leadership at Managing Leadership
• Steve Roesler has put together the quintessential series on Change Management at All Things Workplace
• Valeria Maltoni is a FastCompany and Blog Herald expert in Marketing at Conversation Agent
• Jamie Notter writes about organizations, leadership, and human dynamics at Get Me Jamie Notter
• Seth Godin presents his view of Marketing and more here
• Dr. Alex Pattakos gives meaning to the workplace and life at The Meaning Difference

Make it a great day!

Joe

Joe Raasch :: Dec.14.2007 :: Employee Engagement, Leadership, Organizational Development, Performance Management :: 4 Comments »

(Seventh in a series for Managers - to end this year and prepare for next year)

You found that perfect candidate! You had to look for a bit longer than you expected, and they need to ‘hit the ground running’ now that they’re hired. Great job with your succession planning!

How do you prepare for your new hire? Yes, you need to do more than make sure they have a cubical or office.

THE PLAN

After you receive an acceptance of the offer, spend some time writing out a 90-day plan. You should treat this just like any other important project, with a timeline, milestones, and success factors. Here are some key areas:

Pre-Arrival

Work with your HR representative and ensure, without fail:

1. A computer is ready to go.
2. The desk/cubicle/office is ready, cleaned, and stocked with standard office supplies.
3. The building Security ID is ready or scheduled (picture).
4. Stay in contact with your new hire. Schedule a call one week prior to their start date. Discuss any questions they might have, and be sure to show your enthusiasm for their arrival.
5. Set them up with a ‘buddy’ - someone on the team, ideally with a similar job, that they can go to with tactical questions.

First Day

1. If there is a company new employee orientation, have your new hire attend their first day. Be sure to check on them during the course, just to say ‘hi’.
2. Plan to have lunch with your new hire their first full day in the office.
3. Provide a card, poster, or some other “welcome” from the team.
4. Introduce your new hire to the team, the HR representative, and your manager.
5. Introduce your new hire to their ‘buddy’.

First Week

1. Set up relevant training in computer systems, company/division overviews, etc.
2. Schedule lunch/coffee with team members, in small groups of 2-3 if possible.
3. Keep them busy - not overwhelmed.
4. Have them shadow you at any meetings relevant to their work.
5. Schedule daily one-on-one meetings for the first week.

First Month

1. Review goals for the coming year - S.M.A.R.T. goals! Check here for more on Performance Reviews.
2. Agree on a regular one-on-one meeting rhythm - continue daily, move to weekly, monthly, etc.
3. Ensure they have some early successes on the job to establish and increase confidence and engagement.

Quarterly

1. Meet to review progress to goals. For more on the importance of performance reviews, read Mark Goulston’s article titled, “When Performance Reviews Underperform” in FastCompany Magazine online.
2. Discuss development opportunities and their future.

__________

What would you add to this plan? What helps you as a manager to onboard a new hire? Any great new hire experiences?

Joe Raasch :: Dec.11.2007 :: Employee Engagement, Leadership, Performance Management :: 6 Comments »