|
|
Like this article? PLEASE +1 it! |  |
|
Demonstrating Leadership when Handling a Disgruntled Employee
| Guest post by: Dr. Rick Johnson |
Article Overview: "Are you kidding me?" ---- "I can't believe you are doing this to me!" -----"This just isn't fair" Have you ever heard those words or similar words from an employee? Have you ever had to handle a situation where an employee is so upset they become very emotional? If you haven't and you are in management, you will. It's just a matter of time.
 |
Free Download - Sales Management --Unmask the Confusion of Territory Account Assignment By Dr. Rick Johnson |
Demonstrating Leadership when Handling a Disgruntled Employee
"Are you kidding me?" ---- "I can't believe you are doing this to me!" -----"This just isn't fair"
Have you ever heard those words or similar words from an employee? Have you ever had to handle a situation where an employee is so upset they become very emotional? If you haven't and you are in management, you will. It's just a matter of time.
Avoid Confrontation
Anytime you're dealing with an employee who's disappointed, avoid getting emotional or confrontational, regardless of the employee's attitude. Disarm the confrontation and diffuse the emotion simply by using words and phrases indicating you care about the employee and understand his or her concern. The most powerful words you can use are, "I understand, and we're sorry this happened." You can apologize for something that has occurred even if it's the employee's fault. For sure, you're sorry that the employee really messed things up, and it's okay to express disappointment as long as you do it without criticism. Knowing someone is disappointed in you or knowing you failed to meet someone's expectations often reaches deeper inside than any kind of reprimand or "constructive criticism."
Other phrases you can use include:
• I'll take care of this.
• I understand why you're upset.
• I'd feel the same way.
• I'll check into this situation right now.
• We had a misunderstanding. Please, let's take this opportunity to fix it.
• How can we work on this together?
Complaining is a Message
A complaining employee is sending you a message, and you must determine exactly what that message is. Does it have merit? Is the employee just whining? Is the employee utilizing complaints to cover his or her own short comings? How serious is the issue? Some employees who feel you have not met their expectations don't say anything, they just shut down. They do only what they have to do. In other words, they never release the discretionary energy, which enables them to strive to exceed expectations. If an employee is unhappy in his or her job and doesn't say anything to you at all, chances are you have not earned his or her respect as a manager. So, view a complaining employee as an opportunity to build relationship equity, an opportunity to earn his or her trust and respect. That doesn't mean you have to "kiss up" and do anything the employee wants. But it does mean you should listen to every complaint. If it's just whining, don't be afraid to tell the employee he or she is whining. And if that's the case, make sure you know the facts and you're on solid ground. After all, the employee will also make a judgment as to how well you handle his or her complainthow you handle the situation. If you handle it right, you may gain even more loyalty.
Show Compassion
Showing compassion for the employee's situation and empathizing with his or her feelings is a powerful substitute for becoming defensive and argumentative. A solution cannot be reached until your employee feels your concern through your attitude, your tone and other communication signals. Compassion and empathy demonstrate a concern and respect for the employee even if you have to enforce policy and tell the employee he or she is wrong.
No matter what the situation, don't lose control, and don't be argumentative. Focus on solving the problem and showing the employee you're concerned about his or her feelings. Stick to the facts, and then determine what the problem is. Determine what it's going to take to correct the problem. Figure out what it will take to retain the employee relationship. Sometimes just solving the problem isn't enough. It's how you solve the problem and how you make the employee feel about the interaction to reach the solution.
What if the Situation Warrants a Reprimand?
It's probably a rare circumstance where an employee will come to you with a self-incriminating complaint. However, a complaint by an employee could cause you to investigate a situation and determine the complaining employee was so out of line or violated policy in such a manner that some form of reprimand is necessary. Regardless of the circumstance, its imperative the employee has a complete understanding as to his or her personal responsibility in the situation. Remember: Coaching and mentoring is key to effective leadership, but it does not mean that you abandon your managerial responsibilities.
The majority of employees are coachable and want to do a good job, exceeding all expectations. But, majority does not mean 100%. You have to know when to change from "coach" to "manager." It's not an impossibility that you may have hired the wrong person; we all make mistakes. Don't over-invest in an employee that just isn't going to be the right fit for the job. A key to making that determination is attitude. How does the employee respond to your guidance, your help, your suggestions and your questions?
An effective leader will use the "servant supportive" leadership style more than 95 percent of the time. The key to a leader's effectiveness is knowing when to use the "autocratic dictatorial" style.
Leadership is only doing .
Revenue and Profitability
Feelings of Entitlement
Small Business Employee Policies Series: Employee Confidentiality Policy
Engagement is an Inside Job
Shipping and handling
Demonstrating Effective Leadership By Learning How To Walk The Talk One Step At A Time
The sales pitch is dead
What is True Leadership?
Call Handling Skills
Handling Objections in Four Simple Steps (Really)
The 3 Biggest Myths of Entrepreneurial Leadership
Managers Beware: Tips to Prevent Liability under the ADA
Do you have an employee retention strategy that also increases employee motivation?
Leadership Lessons from Earnest Shackleton, The Great Antarctic Explorer
Leadership Development is Key to Organizational Success
Mother is an Example of Six Sigma Leadership
Today's Employees Hold Leaders More Accountable
Motivating Employees in the Workplace
Lack of Confidence Causes the Costly “Avoid & Tolerate” Leadership Style
|
About the Author: Dr. Rick Johnson RSS for Dr. Rick's articles - Visit Dr. Rick's website www.ceostrategist.com - Sign up to receive "The Howl" a free monthly newsletter that addresses real world industry issues. - Straight talk about today's issues. Rick Johnson, expert speaker, wholesale distribution's "Leadership Strategist", founder of CEO Strategist, LLC a firm that helps clients create and maintain competitive advantage. Need a speaker for your next event, E-mail rick@ceostrategist.com. Dr. Rick Johnson has over 35 years of experience in distribution sales and operations. Rick�s career can be broken down by decades. The first ten years of his distribution career were spent with the largest steel-processing distributor in the world (Joseph T. Ryerson). The second ten years began with Rick starting his own processing distribution center from scratch. In the first year, sales reached $1 million dollars and had grown to $25 million in its tenth year when Rick sold the business to one of the major national chains. The third ten years of Rick�s career dealing with financially troubled Turn-A-Round companies. After completing ten years of TAR work, Rick decided a decade of acting like Darth Vader was enough and became a consultant to the Wholesale Distribution Industry in 1999. Rick received an MBA from Keller Graduate School in Chicago and a Bachelor's degree from Capital University, Columbus Ohio. He also served six years in the United States Air Force as a survival instructor. Rick completed his dissertation on Strategic Leadership and received his Ph.D. in 2005. Rick is frequently published in numerous magazines including a column in Supply House Times, with over 250 different articles published to date. He�s also a published author with eight books to his credit. Click here to visit Dr. Rick's website   The Realities of Service Excellence during Recovery Are You a Procrastinator Cash for Clunkers Was It Worth It Has Your Sales Force Lost Their Passion Developing Your Management Team |
Related Forum Posts
Re: Business Women Peer Mentoring Spotlight
- Hi Everyone,
Gosh, I REALLY appreciate your concrete feedback. This was far more than I expected and I'm glad you said what you thought straight out.
Each of you have shared something of value and I want to take some more time to think and really go over what each of you have said. However, I can see there are some things I need to change right away. What an interesting point about a NEW program perhaps making people think they are guinea pigs! This is NOT what I want to convey!
It's funny how we can see some things so clearly in others while not always seeing it for ourselves! I must admit there are a few things I've been meaning to change (like my bio which is very outdated). Obviously, these things need to be higher on my priority list. You caught me like the plumber who puts his clients first and doesn't get around to fixing his own tap!
As far as my target market, I do feel quite strongly about working with Women Leaders and doing Leadership Coaching with them. It's non-negotiable in my books. In my Executive Coaching training, the terms "Leaders" and "Executives" are interchangable. To me, an Executive is a Leader and so is the Business Woman or Entrepreneur who is CEO of her own business. I love working with decision makers!
What I did learn is that I need to avoid opening up the Leadership term beyond what I described above. I'm also wondering if there is a misunderstanding with the general public as to what Leadership Coaching really is.
Leadership Coaching is all about developing your leadership skills, both as a people manager and in more effectively running and growing the business. There is ALWAYS room for growth in some way. As well, sometimes, we just need a sounding board to clarify what our next BEST step is.
In fact, if a woman thinks she has nothing to work on, then we aren't a good Client/Coach fit anyway. How can she grow if she doesn't see the value of expressing ALL of the great ability within her? How can her company grow if she doesn't see the value of strategic planning for the next best level?
Thanks again to you all! I will go back to my website and really question whether I am conveying the right message.
I got more than I bargained for in this Spotlight... you generously offered way more than I was asking. I think we could be on to something great for the Forum.
Now it's time to let someone else have the spotlight. It would be great if everyone took a turn!
In gratitude,
Tami
Post subject: It's Not Personal, just business
- I so agree! Actually, the business world as we know it IS in trouble. I heard some stats last week that they expect by the time 2050 that 70% of workers will be freelancers. Employee/Executive Bullying won't be able to stand it when it could be easier for someone to simply contract with the nicer guy (or gal). I, for one, will be choosing the nicer ones!
HRPreneur
- Hi everyone,
I am new to the forum and I recently started my own Human Capital (HR) consulting firm called HRPreneur Inc. HRP focuses on making human capital a strategic differentiator for SME's.
Below is a summary about HRP;
Who We Are:
HRP is a Human Capital consulting firm with 30 years of experience that becomes an extension of your company by providing a full array of services to help you create a highly engaged workforce focused on achieving strategic results in order to build a long lasting great company!
Mission:
HRP provides small and medium sized businesses a Strategic HR Business Partner to increase employee engagement, resulting in cost savings, increased productivity and results at an affordable rate!
Vision:
To inspire and warrant SME's reach their full competency!
Cost Effectiveness:
We provide over 30 years of experience at a fraction of the cost at a strategic executive HR business level
You will save between 50% to 60% in costs per year on salary, bonus, benefits, training, office space alone
We will provide you additional cost efficiencies through our services
Services:
• Strategic Human Resources Planning
• Organizational Redesign
• Change Management
• Organizational Culture Development
• Employee Engagement Programs
• Leadership Assessment and Development
• Compensation Design
• Talent Acquisition
• Assimilation and On-Boarding
• Performance Management
• Talent Management & Succession Planning
• Human Resources Due Diligence
• Human Resources Audit
• Full Service HR Outsourcing
Re: 3 Ways I Used Twitter To Grow My Business This Week
- Hi Olivia,
It seems you are working in the area of leadership area. Is Leadership = Learning?
I am looking for some good books on strategy? Which one do you recommend?
Thanks,
Robert
2 Forums Updates
- Many of you have been writing in suggesting that on my website and in my newsletter we include the link to the actual forum post and not just the name of the post and a link to the Forums home page. Well, after looking into it I'm pleased to announce that this feature is now available. Thank you everyone for the suggestions!
We've also added names for members based on how much they post. Level one is Newbie, Level 2 is Intern, Level 3 is Employee and so on... There are 10 levels in total. I'm looking forward to seeing how everyone does!
Keep the suggestions coming - they are great!
Share this article with your friends. Fund someone's dream.
Leave a comment below or share on the left and you'll help support entrepreneurs in Africa through our partnership with Kiva. Over $50,000 raised and counting - Please keep sharing! Learn more.
by: Erin Ferree, Small Business Branding Coach
Best Automated Forex Trading Strategy
Build Your List with Joint Venture Giveaway Events
May 2012 Top 100 Social Media Experts to Follow on Twitter
What to measure to be phenomenally successful in business
10 mistakes of media relations
Get advice & tips from famous business
owners, new articles by entrepreneur
experts, my latest website updates, &
special sneak peaks at what's to come!
20 MORE Must-Have Search Engine Marketing Tools
Emotional Intelligence in Business
Tips to Take Control of Credit Card Debt
Email us your ideas on how to make our
website more valuable! Thank you Sharon
from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for
your suggestions to make the newsletter
look like the website and profile younger
entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez.