How to Manage Difficult Employees

Narayan van de Graaff Local Government Learning Solutions

Objectives

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A. Learn strategies to deal with the following ‘difficult’ people: 1. Challenging personalities (using DiSC) 2. Poor attitudes 3. Poor performers 4. Communication problems

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B. Help staff move from dysfunctional to functional relationships

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C. Practice coaching, rather than taking on other’s ‘monkeys’

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D. Use TELL technique when giving negative or positive feedback

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E. Apply the template for dealing with ‘difficult’ people

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A: Types of Difficult Employees •

1. Challenging personalities

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2. Poor attitudes 3. Poor performers 4. Communication problems

Types of Difficult Employees

1. Challenging personalities

DiSC: Challenging Personalities DiSC Personality Profile OUTGOING

Dominant

Influencing

I am what I achieve

I am what others see

TASK FOCUS

D

I

C

s

PEOPLE FOCUS

Cautious

Stabilising

I am what I perfect

I am what I contribute

RESERVED

DiSC: Dominant Personalities




They may be great in being decisive, driving change, and thriving on challenges, but they may: - over-react and challenge leadership - be over-controlling or a bully - alienate themselves from others

DiSC: Influencing Personalities




They may be great influencers, very enthusiastic and have lots of great ideas, but they may:




- have time management problems




- dislike making unpopular decisions




- not achieve their work goals (talking too much!)

DiSC: Stabilising Personalities


They may be loyal, steady, great team players and quiet achievers, but they may:




- have difficulty saying ‘no’




- be slow to embrace change




- need a strong focus on personal relationships




rather than just facts, results and efficiencies

DiSC: Concise Personalities


They may be conscientious, efficient and wellorganised but they may:




- be perfectionistic




- be slow to embrace change




- have time management problems

Strategies: Various Personalities Dominant:

Influencing:

Be objective/specific

Be informal

Talk about facts

Be enthusiastic

Encourage teamwork

Recognise their ideas

Suggest a result

Maintain focus on goals/time

Concise:

Stabilising:

Be factual

Recognise team contribution

Explain why

Help them embrace change

Ensure outcomes focus

Be personal

Follow procedures

Enlist their help

Strategies: Various Personalities


Key Questions:




What sort of personality are you?




How does this influence the way in which you deal with others?




Are you possibly seen as the difficult one?!?

Difficult Personalities: Strategies - Ensure they recognise the problem (blind spot?) - Jointly explore strategies to deal with issue - Ensure they are willing to own agreed outcomes - Monitor progress - Recognise improvements - Deal with ongoing problem in timely, effective way

Types of Difficult Employees

2. Poor attitudes

Employees With Poor Attitudes Poor attitudes can dramatically affect / infect team morale and work productivity. Common ‘poor’ attitudes are: - rebellious attitude towards authority - negative attitude towards the organisation - great sense of entitlement (but not accountability) - unmotivated and lazy - aggressive, condescending, argumentative

Employees With Poor Attitudes Examples of poor attitudes in your council? How have they affected team morale/productivity? What actions were taken? What were the outcomes? What has worked?

Employees With Poor Attitudes Strategies : - Treat it as a serious problem - Don’t procrastinate – it won’t go away! - Indicate how it is impacting on morale/productivity - Try to uncover underlying reason(s) - Offer support and be very firm - Follow through in timely, effective manner

Types of Difficult Employees

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3. Poor performers

Poor Performers

Poor Performers In what way a poor performer? - Disorganised/doesn’t follow directions - Doesn’t achieve job requirements - Poor contributor to team/creates problems - Resistance to change or learning needed skills - Very anxious and stressed – sprays over others - Follow through in timely, effective manner - Others?

Poor Performers

Examples of poor performers? In what way were they performing poorly? How were they dealt with? What were the outcomes? Which strategies worked/didn’t work?

1.

Managing Poor Performance: Define the problem Template

What specifically is the person doing wrong? Don't talk in generalities or pick on isolated incidents.

2. Determine the cause •

Does the person know what is expected?

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Are they aware the performance is unacceptable?

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When did it become apparent? Was it gradual or sudden?

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Has the job (or your standards) changed over time?

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Has the person been adequately trained?

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Do they have the proper resources/support to do the job?

2.

Managing Poor Performance: Template Determine the cause (cont)

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Are any external influences affecting their performance?

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Would another job better use their abilities?

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Is the performance largely due to failure on my part?

3. Take corrective action •

Consult with your manager and HR

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Hold performance review/establish program

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Hold frequent progress reviews. Recognise any progress.

4. If it persists... •

Take necessary action – in a timely, assertive manner

Types of Difficult Employees

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4. Communication problems

Communication Problems Can be various issues and underlying reasons: - Employee appears to understand but doesn’t - Can be a cultural issue: ashamed to state it - Was the task clearly communicated, and understanding/commitment verified? - Was there jargon/technical information that wasn’t understood?

Examples of communication problems?

Communication Problems Strategies : - Encourage them to ask questions/indicate they don’t understand - Check for understanding: ask for feedback - Demonstrate where possible - Recognise that different personality types like to communicate in different ways - Use appropriate communication modes

B: ‘TELL’ Model for Giving Feedback

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Tell them what behaviour is problematic/positive

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Explain implications of their actions (positive or negative)

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Listen to their ideas for correcting problem

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Let them know consequences (positive or negative)

‘TELL’ Model for Giving Feedback •

(Tell) “I observed that during the team meeting you were distracted twice by personal mobile calls.”

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(Explain) “As a result everyone was distracted and the important discussions on safety issues were not given full attention.”

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(Listen) “How we can get around this in the future?”

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(Let) “Okay, while I understand that you have sick parents, we have agreed that in future meetings you will put your mobile phone on silent mode and will leave the meeting if the call is an urgent family matter – is that how you see it?”

‘TELL’ Model for Giving Feedback

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We will now watch an excerpt of a DVD which shows how to use the ‘TELL’ methodology.

‘TELL’ Model for Giving Feedback

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Pairs Exercise:

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Develop a ‘TELL’ response for a situation involving a difficult employee. Share it with your partner, then briefly role-play your response with each other.

C. (Dys)functional Relationships How many of the difficult employees are caught up in the destructive persecutor/victim/rescuer triangle?

From Dysfunctional Relationships…

… To Functional Relationships

D. Coaching versus Telling • Unlock potential to maximise performance • Use effective questioning, listening, etc. • Help them find other possibilities • Help learn rather than instruct • Give constructive feedback • Facilitate rather than tell • Not the problem-solver

What is Coaching? • Have you been taking on other people’s monkeys? (i.e. those of managers and supervisors)?

• Do you need to coach managers to take responsibility for dealing with poor performance/difficult employees? • Do you need to enhance your coaching skills?

The GROW Coaching Model GOAL Agree on topic/objective

REALITY Encourage self-assessment Specific feedback examples

OPTIONS Explore options, ensure decisions

WRAP-UP Get commitment to action

Identify how overcome obstacles

E. Dealing With Difficult People Breathe! Get their input Positive self-talk  Debrief if needed  Partnership mindset  Don’t take it personally  Creative problem-solving  Empathy/active listening skills  Give them a chance to vent their spleen  Ultimately, be assertive and state boundaries 

Summary of Issues and Strategies Issues

Strategies

Challenging personalities

Use strategies for DiSC profile and other stated strategies

Poor attitudes

State seriousness, get ownership, etc.

Poor performers

Template to manage poor performance

Communication prob’s Check understanding, right modes, etc. Need for feedback

Use TELL technique

(Dys)functional relationships

Help parties in conflict become learners, educators and mediators

Coaching versus telling

Ensure managers keep monkeys! Coach managers as needed

Difficult people

Use template provided for this purpose

That’s It!

Success with managing difficult employees!