My strong belief is that no employee comes to work with the intention of messing up the job allotted. If the results are not as desired the manager should assist the concerned to reach the goal.
If you are the manager with a team working for you, the first point you realise is that not all team members are the same, the background personal and also educational, upbringing, attitude, commitment to work, and understanding are very rarely the same. These are some of the factors but there are a number of attributes which differ from individual to individual. You try to have a strong organizational culture that can assist you in getting most of them on the same page but still, differences do exist. The manager has to acknowledge the same and ensure he/she behaves with the team members accordingly.
It is not uncommon that some team member carries a not-so-positive attitude to work. If it is a one-off case then the manager needs to understand the reasons for the weird behaviour on a particular day. It could be a result of some unpleasant incident at home. Again it is very common for employees to carry domestic problems to work and stress from the workplace to home. It is not easy for someone to just ditch the issues in either place. Managers also must understand that at the end of the day all work for taking care of their families so it could happen that some domestic issue can bother the employee. If the manager can find out then it might be worth having a straight talk to discuss and help if possible.
The more complicated issue is when there is an unprofessional attitude which can create negativity in the team without the members realising the same. Some of the classic examples are
- There could be an open dislike towards either the manager or other team member
- Passive-aggressive behaviour
- Not completing the task assigned on time and also not letting anyone else know about it
- Showing minimal efforts to complete tasks on time
- No concern for outcome or customer
In such cases, there is a clear negativity brought to the team which can affect the team performance. How does the manager handle such situations?
- The easiest option could be to remove the team member from the team/organisation. Frankly, this is no option, the concerned manager will have to spend more time and energy and get the employee back on track as soon as possible.
- Coercion – this also is not a good option, the manager may get the work done at that time but the employee will have a lot of bitterness which can lead to poorer performance in the future.
- The third option will be helpful for all stakeholders. The manager really has a big role to play, he will have to find out what will trigger the employee which will encourage him/her to behave better. The manager has to work with them to address any issues he/she is facing especially when he/she does not understand how negative attitude is affecting the rest of the team.
The manager has to find out whether there is a skill deficit issue. Whether proper tools to perform the job are provided. That is probably the easiest way to address the problem.
If the tools are not an issue and skills are the issue then the manager should help the concerned to upgrade the skill levels to the desired minimum, provided the team member is open to that.
After having exhausted the above the next course would be to develop a PIP (Performance Improvement Plan) in discussion with HR and/or their line manager.
- Review the objectives with the member. Also, check whether the team member understood exactly what is expected. Having seen that manager also should check whether they were achievable. Was there any change of priorities that resulted in letting these slip?
- Review the environment, does the employee have a conducive environment to perform? Does he/she have adequate resources at their disposal?
- Was any new skill required to perform, which though was offered to the team but the concerned employee has not picked up?
- The manager should also find out whether the concerned individual understands the impact of his/her non-performance on the team’s performance. If the member does not, then the manager has to explain the impact in detail going to the end may be till the product/services reach the customer.
- It could be a good idea to organise 360-degree feedback for the member.
- Based on all of the above may be it worth re-setting the goals and drawing out a new action plan.
- Monitor the action plan and give regular feedback
- If there is any shortfall from one employee discuss with the team how they will deliver the end goal without any changes in the original goal.
This is a rough framework that is followed and helps the team to deliver. Once the team delivers as a group, naturally it will have a positive impact on the concerned team member as well.
