Human resource managers say no
matter how good a recruitment process is, companies are likely to have
difficult employees now and then. When this happens, they say it is up
to managers to deal with them. This report highlights how such employees can be handled.
Some employees are just difficult. They
are arrogant, cynical, disrespectful, argumentative and pushy, among
other things. As a manager, Human Resource experts say all managers get
to deal with such employees at one point or the other in the course of
their careers. So what do you do, fire them? Not so fast. That is
because as a manager, HR managers, say it is your responsibility to deal
with them.
Continue after the cut...
But how do you go about that when they
feel they are being unfairly singled out and victimized? Why do they act
the way they do? They are many theories about why an employee may be
difficult. Some HR managers say it is down to the environment – the
company’s atmosphere and policies. Others say no matter how appropriate
the atmosphere and policies are, some employees will still be
troublesome. One thing they agree upon is that before you consider the
option of terminating their employment, as their manager, you need to
ensure that you understand why they act the way they do and that you are
not the cause. When faced with a difficult employee, try the following:
Evaluate
According to experts, no matter the
urgency with which you may be required to deal with a problematic
employee, the first thing is for you to review the situation. They say
you have to think before you act as failure to do this will only worsen
matters because you are likely to approach the employee wrongly.
Evaluating the situation or problem properly is important because every
action you take sends a signal to other employees.
Through your evaluation you will be able
to determine if there is truly a problem or if it is just one of those
things that are likely to happen now and then. You have to also take
into consideration the nature of the job and the level of pressure under
which your team has to work. Could the problem have been triggered by
the atmosphere and the company’s policies? All of these are important.
Rise above sentiments
Some employees will always act like
victims and some as ‘good guys’. Both sets of employees are categorised
by some experts as troublesome employees. So when the ‘good guys’ feed
you with information about the others, experts say there is need for you
to ensure that you do not take decisions without verification.
According to them, it is important that you base your actions on facts
and that you always rise above sentiments as a manager. So, when next
the ‘victim’ come to you with a complaint about how unfairly everyone
else is treating them, don’t just decide to ‘defend the defenseless’ by
protecting him. Find out first if that is truly the case. One way you
can rise above sentiments and base your action on facts rather than
gossip or narratives is by ensuring that you always carry out some form
of investigation and get your own facts. Failure to this will mean that
you have become a part of the problem.
Try to understand
As explained above, in dealing with
difficult employees, you risk getting emotional because there will be a
lot of sentiments involved. This is the reason why you need to
personally understand what is going on. How come you are receiving
negative reports about an excellent employee all of a sudden? And even
when you witness the attitude yourself, HR experts say there is still
need for you to try to understand the reasons for the sudden outburst or
change in attitude. Ask questions and listen to the answers, get all
the views and then you will be in a better position to take a decision.
Come up with a plan
So you have evaluated the situation and
you are sure that you have not been sentimental about it. You are also
convinced that having listened attentively and asked relevant questions,
you understand what is going on; an employee is being difficult. What
next? Experts say you need a plan, a course of action.
If you have decided to talk to an
employee, you have to determine the when, where and how. What exactly
are you going to say to them? Do you need witnesses? Should it be a
formal mail or just a private confrontation? When you go to ‘war’
without a plan, it is agreed that are likely going to end up fighting a
losing battle.
Deal with the problem
Some managers, even after they have
realised that an employee is troublesome, assume that the problem will
just go away. Some keep waiting for an ‘undefined’ appropriate moment.
But experts warn that failing to deal with the problem promptly, may
aggravate it. They argue that one way or the other you will have to do
it anyway, because it is your responsibility and failure to keep your
team in check can cost you dearly. So deal with it. In dealing with the
situation, HR Managers say it is also important that you focus on the
problem and not the employee. They explain that there is a different
between a bad attitude and a bad employee. If an employee is aggressive
for instance, you can talk about how aggression is not suitable or
acceptable in the organisation rather than telling the person to change.
Do not relent
According to experts, it is not enough
for a manager to talk to an employee once and give up when the expected
changes do not occur. They stress that some employees simply do not know
what they are meant to be doing while some others have developed
certain habits over the years. It will therefore require more than just
one 10 minutes talk to get the employee on the right track. This is very
important when you are dealing with an employee that gets the job done
despite all the trouble. Experts say you stand a lot to gain if you can
manage that person and resolve the problem. So, try for a while longer.
Learn to be patient, and keep your expectations reasonable. If you truly
understand the problem, this should not be a problem.
Know when it’s beyond you
You have been told to understand and to
be patient, but there is a limit to all of that. According to experts,
some employees will always be troublesome no matter what you do. It is
important to know when you are dealing with such an employee, and to
take the necessary steps, which may ultimately end with termination of
the person’s employment.
Learn to let go
If you handle things right, experts say
more often than not, you will resolve the problem. When this happens,
you need to move on. Many managers make the mistake of bearing a grudge
and this neither helps you nor the employee.
- Simon Ejembi
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