bonnieandtilly

As a management consultant, one of the primary duties I held was to help resolve performance and attitude problems.  Interestingly, most of the attitude problems I was hired to resolve were based on performance problems…  I solve people problems, which is why I felt so powerless being directly involved in one of this caliber.  If you are just tuning in, I’ve numbered the posts related to this “workshop” in the order they should be read.  I am walking myself through a self-analysis and consulting myself as if I were a client – this is a good refresher course for me.

People come in all varieties – and so do their problems.  As such, there are no pre-packaged responses that I can unwrap and engage.  Differing circumstances call for differing responses.  I need to assess WHY this problem needs resolution, WHAT should be done if the “offender” fails to comply with the solution, and what kind of dialog/ communication format will serve my needs best?

The bigger the performance gap, the more serious my response needs to be.  But it needs to remain constructive, respectful, and if at all possible, POSITIVE in nature.

Resolution:

When faced with the facts validating the performance gap, my “offenders” did not buy into the importance of resolving the problem.  They saw it as MY problem, because it did not bother them.  I had to refrain from justifying WHY from a position of power… “Because I’m in charge and I say so.”  just won’t cut it… nothing positive in that and I do not lead by intimidation.  The power/authority approach usually puts the “offender” on the defensive and breeds resentment.

In order to determine valid reasons for the “offenders” to commit to change, and to determine what kind of discussion I need to conduct (coaching, counseling or formal discipline) I need to take two variables into account:  Impact and Consequences.

Impact deals with the negative effects of the problem (on the work environment, clients, the bottom line). Determining the impact gives me objective reasons why the problem must be solved.

I made a list of the five most obvious impacts the problem at hand is causing.  It established not only my right to expect change, but my obligation as a leader to make sure it happens.  It gave my “offenders” reasons they should cooperate that did not involve threats or power trips.  It minimized the risk of my being considered “unfair” or “out to get them.”

Unfortunately, my “offenders” still did not accept responsibility for their role in causing the problem we addressed.  I realized they were not going to “get it” as I was presenting it because they couldn’t see how it affected them personally.  These are not team players I’m working with here. 

It became necessary for me to present my “offenders” with a short list of negative outcomes (consequences) they will experience should they chose not to cooperate.  Not threats – I didn’t tell them they would lose their jobs (I am not in the position to fire them anyway).  I jut pointed out the predictable outcomes (to most of us they were obvious but not to these two) should they fail to comply (relationships with other employees, reputation, los of bonuses, limits to advancement, possible disciplinary action in the future).  Because I thought out these consequences before entering into the conversation I was able to present them when my “offenders” refused to accept their responsibilities.

~B