“…Warn those who are idle, encourage the timid, help the weak, be patient with everyone. Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always try to be kind to each other and to everyone else.” (1 Thessalonians 5:12-15)
After a year on the job, Jarod and his boss did not see eye to eye on everything. In fact, they probably saw most things differently. Even so, Jarod made a conscious effort not to speak negatively in public or with other workers when referring to his work situation. He was surprised that he had never had a performance evaluation, especially since he knew the company policy clearly stipulated that reviews should take place at six and twelve months after a new employee began work. Although he wasn’t completely happy in his new job, as far as Jarod could tell, he was adequately fulfilling his responsibilities.
That’s why it caught him completely by surprise on Friday morning when Alex stepped into his office and announced, “You know, this really is not working out well, so today is your last day here. Clean out your desk and turn in all your pending files by this afternoon.”
Unfortunately, Jarod’s story is not very unusual among many businesses. Some organizations act as if they believe leadership is a natural, innate ability that is automatically endued to anyone named to any management position. One of the first items to be cut during difficult financial times is training for leaders. Small businesses and non-profit organizations are often notorious for providing less than adequate training and skills upgrade for leaders. Cutting leadership training from the budget might appear to provide short-term budget savings, but the longer term results will be very costly.
1. Reduced productivity.
How much productivity is lost by people talking about the problems caused by a weak or a dominating leader? People will always spend time talking around the actual or virtual “water cooler” (social networking sites). Poor leadership is likely to ensure that the conversation is negative and counterproductive. Much time and energy can be lost agonizing over the poor decisions and poor interpersonal skills of leaders.
2. Decline in Morale
Who wants to work in a place where you don’t know what’s expected and you never know when the axe might fall? Poor morale grows like mold in the darkness and is not easily turned around.
3. Erasure of loyalty
Loyalty has become a thing of the past. Employees do not demonstrate loyalty to the company because they do not feel loyalty from the company to its employees. Managers seem to forget that the organization cannot reach its objectives without the productive participation of its personnel. Loyalty is built on trust and trust is built on trustworthiness. Employees who do not trust their leader/supervisors will tend to adhere strictly to the rules, regulations and policies out of fear. One union worker once told me that the way to shut a company down is for the workers to apply the letter of the law and follow every policy to the letter.
4. Increased personnel costs
Often leaders draw the bottom line too soon when “counting the cost.” Consider the high cost of not confronting or dealing with the problem. Consider the cost of severance packages, searching for and hiring new personnel to fill vacancies and the cost of collateral losses when other people quit or become less productive because they can’t seem to get along with the individual who is causing problems.
Remember the Reason
“No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.” (Hebrews 12:11)
Confrontational meetings are always best done through personal and direct forms of communication, and followed up in writing. At every point along the way, remember that as a leader, you already have authority and a certain power that can easily be misused. You do not have to be mean as you exercise leadership to help someone become a more effective worker within the bounds of the organization’s vision, mission, objectives, and policies. You do not have to be “bossy” or use command language to get the person to change this specific behavior. It is important that the person confronted sense that their leader wants them to succeed and believes they can. The goal is to communicate clearly that this person is of value and can be a productive and effective team member by changing this specific behavior. If the other person can see your face and hear your voice of compassion as you communicate the difficult words, there is a better chance of achieving the goal of change.
So, What Can You Do?
Years ago, Tom Peters suggested in Thriving on Chaos that policies should express positive expectations. Try to make policies that enable, empower and motivate people to respond with service. Limit negative policies to the absolute minimum. Avoid writing policies based on one or two negative experiences.
Most organizations or companies have written policies and procedures for how to carry out administrative actions with personnel who are not performing to management’s expectations. The mere publication of a policy and procedure, however, does not guarantee that managers know how to effectively administer personnel issues to the best benefit of the organization. Training is needed to help leaders learn how to administer policies in such a way that the productivity of their personnel actually improves.
Whether or not Jarod was performing his duties satisfactorily to Alex’s expectations, there are a few simple steps that Alex could have followed that could have resulted in a much happier ending to Jarod’s story for all concerned. The steps are simple, but they do require some effort.
Hints to the Leader:
1. Clarify expectations.
If a worker is not meeting your expectations, confront early and make your expectations clear. Let them know what a good job should look like.
2. Offer assistance for improvement.
If the individual is not performing to the level of your expectations, assume the first responsibility and make sure they receive adequate instruction and training. Assign a mentor or coach. Make sure they have an accountability partner for progress. Ask questions and LISTEN CAREFULLY to be sure you understand what the problem is.
3. Give a warning—then offer more assistance
Many leaders want to skip this step and just go straight to the corrective administrative action—also known as “You’re fired!” Unless the failure is clearly a terminal offense, give a clear warning that this behavior is unacceptable and must be changed or there will be consequences. Ask if there is anything keeping the individual from being able to meet the expectation. Offer to provide additional help. KEEP LISTENING.
4. Outline consequences of failure to meet expectations.
All too often leaders wait until the problem becomes so unbearable that they suddenly turn into the Incredible Hulk and go ballistic without warning. They hold their complaints until they scream out like Popeye in the cartoons, “That’s all I can stands, I can’t stands no more!” You might think you are demonstrating patience by holding your comments, but you are really doing the person a disservice by not letting them know clearly what the consequences will be if your expectations are not met.
5. Get help for yourself, too.
Everyone needs a mentor, coach, advisor, counselor, accountability partner or friend who can offer a listening ear, ask questions, give an opinion or offer suggestions. Ask if you are being reasonable or if there might be an alternative that could possibly get better results. Consult up line with your own leader to be sure you are standing on solid ground and will have the support of your leader if corrective action is required. Your supervisor should always be given a “heads up” that a problem could be brewing.
6. Set a specific date for review.
Be sure the individual knows not only what is expected, but also when it is expected and when they will give you an accounting of progress.
7. Reward baby steps.
The reward can be very simple and very small. As in horse training, often the most effective reward is a very small positive stimulus to a very small movement in the right direction. The reward can be as simple as releasing the tension on the reins when the horse first makes even a slight nudge of the head in the right direction. In the beginning, reward or praise even the intent to correct the unacceptable behavior. Be careful, however, not to over-praise small steps of progress.
8. Redirect a thought.
Cowboys know that a cornered steer will cut its eyes in the direction of a perceived escape. An experienced rider will move to block that thought and make the escape route seem uninviting by waving a hand with a hat or a lasso or pulling the horse in the path of visibility to make the space seem smaller and less secure. As soon as you see an unacceptable behavior, find a way to redirect the person’s thinking to something positive and acceptable.
9. Follow up.
Even if the unacceptable behavior or performance is corrected, follow up to let them know you remember and truly expect a change to take place. Ask about progress along the way. Be sure they know you want them to succeed. (You do want them to succeed, don’t you?) Follow up a face-to-face meeting with an email confirming in writing what you talked about. Remind them of what you agreed upon and what your specific expectations.
10. Follow through.
Never give a warning unless you are fully prepared to follow through with action. Don’t be like the father who warned his son who was misbehaving: “I’m only going to warn you about this seventeen more times and then I’m really going to do something! (maybe).” Threats do not produce better results or more productive behavior. Be a person of integrity whose actions align with your words. Don’t threaten to do anything. Instead, let it be known what the consequences will be and then act exactly as you say you will.
11. Document, Document, Document
Be sure to keep accurate records.
Hints to the Follower:
What if my boss is not following these steps? How do I deal with an inconsiderate or incompetent boss?
1. Go the extra mile.
Show that you really are trying to do the best job possible with what you have been given.
2. Make suggestions instead of demands.
Let your boss know you really do want to help make things better, not just for yourself, but also for the benefit of the company.
3. Be careful not to develop an attitude of disdain or arrogance
Be respectful, even if you think your boss is not doing a good job, he or she is still the boss and deserves respect.
4. Model the behavior you want your boss to demonstrate toward you.
Be courteous. If you want more communication, communicate more. If you want more openness, be more open.
5. Recognize that not all personalities are created the same.
Some people are more people oriented, some are more task oriented. Some prefer more direct communication, while others prefer more indirect ways of communicating. Try to adapt to your boss’ way of doing things while also asking him or her to recognize your personality differences.
6. Ask for training. Ask for help.
Recognize your need for development. You might need to find your own mentor, coach and accountability partner. Don’t just use them to vent your frustrations. Ask them to help you set goals for real improvement and growth.
7. Ultimately, you are responsible for seeing that your needs are met.
Don’t expect someone else to be responsible for your personal development and growth. Take responsibility for your own career.
(Click here to download a free copy of a more detailed document Confronting for Change: It’s the Loving Thing to Do, outlining step by step how to administer positive corrective action.)
© Copyright Dr. Larry N. Gay, June 20, 2010
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