5
Managing People

Learning Objectives

By the end of this chapter, you should be able to:

• Explain the importance of performance feedback and describe how to give both positive and corrective feedback.

• Identify and describe strategies for working with difficult employees.

• List causes of workplace conflict and explain how to manage conflict when it occurs.

• Describe the different methods for taking disciplinary action.

Managing employees can be a constant challenge for the first-line supervisor. Your primary concern has to be getting the job done and this has to be done through the efforts of your people. It is also likely that upper management is exhorting you to have your people work harder or more efficiently. There are performance standards to be met, and other departments are depending on the delivery of products or services.

In order to meet these multiple responsibilities, you have to focus on your responsibilities for managing people. This chapter provides guidance on the following people management skills:

1. Providing Performance Feedback

2. Working with Difficult Employees

3. Managing Workplace Conflict

4. Taking Disciplinary Action

PERFORMANCE FEEDBACK

Most people want and need regular feedback about their performance. In fact, it is estimated that 80 percent of the performance problems (“they just aren’t motivated”) that occur on the job would be solved if supervisors gave more and better feedback.

One of the reasons you see people rushing to leave work at the end of the day is that they are in a hurry to do something that gives them feedback. People spend their leisure time playing golf, bowling, fishing, or participating in activities where they get lots of feedback. How many people do you think would go to the bowling alley every week if they put a curtain in front of the pins? You would throw the first ball, hear a crash, and get your ball back. On your second shot you wouldn’t know whether there was one pin or nine still behind the curtain. Bowling alleys that put up curtains would go out of business. Unfortunately for many people, work is that way—they never know whether they’ve knocked down one pin or gotten a strike.

It is estimated that people do things right 80 percent of the time, yet they rarely get positive feedback. Let them make a mistake, however, and someone is almost certain to let them know. Often when an employee is criticized and the feedback is not handled well, conflict results between the employee and the supervisor.

Using Feedback Systems

Feedback systems are methods of delivering performance data on a regular basis to employees about their work. Information may be in the form of production reports, error reports, sales numbers, budgets, or other measures you use to gauge the quality and/or quantity of work. Feedback systems are helpful for keeping employees informed about how they are doing and whether their performance is on target.

Feedback systems are not intended to replace personal, one-on-one feedback. However, they can be effective management tools by letting employees know where they stand in relation to specific goals. As a first-line supervisor you can use these systems as points of discussion. Clearly seeing the results provides common ground for you and your employees to view performance and for you to provide feedback on that performance.

Feedback systems can also be a source of “friendly competition” among employees. For example, if there are multiple shifts doing similar work they can compete with each other for the best results. Similarly, when there are multiple locations an organization often compares results from the various locations. Individual employees can also compare their performance with each other as well as from one week to the next.

Paul manages a service business that operates twenty-four hours a day. He has three eight-hour shifts, and each has a shift manager. Each quarter all three shifts set goals for themselves in terms of sales, customer satisfaction, quality, employee retention, and profit. He posts a big goal poster on the bulletin board in the employee break room. Each shift’s goals are listed along with its current results. Each week he recognizes the shift that comes closest to its goals as well as the shift with the best results. His feedback system has created friendly competition and, even more importantly, more consistent results.

Exercise 1: Feedback Systems

INSTRUCTIONS: Take a moment to think about the feedback systems you currently use or ones that you could develop.

Provide Positive Feedback to Reinforce Performance

It’s human nature to want to please the boss. It’s also human nature to want to be appreciated for doing a good job. Praise can take many different forms: a verbal thank-you, a written thank-you, recognition in front of peers, and rewards such as plaques or bonuses.

Giving feedback doesn’t take much time and it isn’t costly. When used appropriately, it can help keep your people on track and encourage them to continue good performance or improve poor performance. Effective praise has several elements—it’s specific, immediate, earned, and individualized.

Be as Specific as Possible

Tell the employee what you liked and you are more likely to see that behavior again. “Janet, I really like the way you improved the efficiency of the production line by putting spare parts next to the line.” Specific feedback of this type is a lot better than just saying, “Good job.”

Feedback Should Be Immediate

The closer the feedback to the performance, the more impact it has. Don’t wait for two or three days. Tell the employee as soon as possible.

Feedback Must Be Earned

Don’t go around telling all your employees they did a good job just to give positive feedback. False praise can have a negative effect on the employee who knows he doesn’t deserve it. It can also produce resentment among other employees who think you can’t tell the difference between good and bad performance.

Individualize the Feedback

Use the person’s name so he or she knows you recognized his or her specific contribution. Avoid saying the same thing to every employee. Be aware of individual differences; some employees may prefer verbal feedback whereas others would rather have it in writing. The more you know about your employees, the better you’ll be at giving effective feedback that meets their needs.

It is important that you get in the habit of providing positive feedback on a regular basis. To help build the habit, you may want to:

• Put recognition on your daily “to do” list.

• Use voice mail and e-mail to send people recognition when you are away and can’t do it in person.

• Use colorful note cards and write short positive comments on them and give them to the person. You’ll be surprised how many will keep them as reminders.

Exercise 2: Recognition and Reward

INSTRUCTIONS: Take a moment to complete this exercise now. You might also talk to some other first-line supervisors in your organization and ask them what they do to recognize and reward their employees.

Part I. Non-Monetary Recognition and Rewards

Your organization may provide monetary bonuses or other incentives to reward employee performance. However, as a first-line supervisor you also play a key role in motivating your employees by recognizing and rewarding their good performance. There are numerous non-monetary rewards you can give to create an environment where people feel respected and appreciated for a job well done. Add your own ideas to the following list:

• Greet employees as they arrive for work.

• Thank employees personally for doing extra work on a project.

• Recognize employees publicly at a team meeting.

• Send out a memo praising an employee’s contribution.

• _________________________________________________

• _________________________________________________

• _________________________________________________

• _________________________________________________

• _________________________________________________

• _________________________________________________

• _________________________________________________

• _________________________________________________

• _________________________________________________

• _________________________________________________

Part II. Recognition Strengthens Performance

The use of frequent recognition is an important performance management tool. Letting people know you appreciate their work can lead to even better performance. List below those employees who deserve some positive feedback from you, the specific performance you want to recognize, and what you will say to the employee.

Employee: _________________________________________________

Performance: _______________________________________________

I will say: __________________________________________________

Employee: _________________________________________________

Performance: _______________________________________________

I will say: __________________________________________________

Employee: __________________________________________________

Performance: ________________________________________________

I will say: ___________________________________________________

Providing Corrective Feedback

Most people are aware when they have done something wrong but may not understand the effect of their behavior. That’s why corrective feedback that solves the problem should be your goal. Corrective feedback should focus on unsatisfactory performance and how it can be eliminated. It should include four things: behavior, effect, expectation, and result.

Corrective feedback should focus on the unacceptable behavior (what the employee is doing or not doing). It is important that you keep the focus on the behavior, not on the person. Focusing on the person can lead to bias in the feedback, due to perceptions you may have for or against that person. Second, the corrective feedback should also explain the effect, that is, why the behavior is unacceptable, how it hurts productivity, or how it bothers others. Again, be sure you focus on the behavior and not the person. Then tell the employee what you expect. As noted earlier, when people know what you want, there is a better chance that they’ll do it. Finally, let the employee know the result, that is, what will happen if behavior changes. Try to be positive whenever possible. In some cases, however, you may have to explain the negative consequences if the behavior continues. For example:

“John, it really causes a problem when you are late (behavior) because we get behind on production (effect). I expect you to be here on time every day (expectation). That way you can participate in our daily production decisions (result).” If the positive approach doesn’t work, you may have to resort to negative consequences: “If you are late again I will have to dock your pay.”

The goal when giving corrective feedback is to eliminate the behavior that caused the problem. When giving corrective feedback, avoid such terms as “never” or “always.” These tend to make it sound like the person only does what’s wrong and that you haven’t seen any signs of the correct behavior. Also, give corrective feedback in private. Public criticism embarrasses the person and is usually rejected when someone else is around.

After giving corrective feedback, it’s important that you follow up. Without follow-up you won’t know whether the behavior has changed. When you do follow up, provide positive feedback if the performance has improved. If the performance is still unacceptable, however, repeat the corrective feedback.

Exercise 3: Giving Corrective Feedback

INSTRUCTIONS: The goal of giving corrective feedback is to eliminate the behavior that caused the problem. Take a moment to think about a specific situation in which you need to provide corrective feedback to an employee. Use the worksheet below to plan your corrective feedback.

Employee: ____________________________________________________

1. What is the behavior that needs to be corrected? Be specific.

_____________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________

2. What effect is the behavior having on others?

_____________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________

3. What do you expect the employee to do?

_____________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________

4. What will be the result if the behavior changes? If it doesn’t change?

_____________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________

How and when will you follow up to see whether the behavior has improved?

_____________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________

Performance Appraisal as a Feedback Tool

How do you feel when your boss says it’s time for your performance appraisal? Do you react with fear? Concern? Excitement? Enthusiasm? Whether it’s your own performance that’s being appraised or you are the one responsible for appraising an employee, performance appraisals never fail to bring out strong feelings.

One reason both supervisors and employees may feel this way is that they don’t understand the purposes and benefits of the appraisal process. Effective performance appraisals have three purposes and benefits (Cadwell, 1994):

1. Examine employee performance with respect to goals. Performance appraisals tell both the supervisor and the employee how much progress they are making toward meeting established goals. It also gives you, as the supervisor, an opportunity to reinforce the expectations you have for the employee.

2. Improve employee performance. If an employee is having problems meeting his or her goals, you can take steps during the appraisal to help improve performance. Perhaps you need to provide additional resources or information. By working together, you and your employee should be able to ensure mutual goals are indeed met.

3. Identify current or potential problems. Sometimes employees have problems that they are not even aware of. Or perhaps something they are doing now is likely to result in a problem down the road. In either case, your role is to help your employees identify these current or potential problems. The performance appraisal process allows you to share your expertise about the ways things work in your organization.

Exhibit 5–1 provides an outline for the performance appraisal discussion process. Before you conduct a performance appraisal with an employee, you should talk to your immediate supervisor. It’s important that you have a thorough understanding of the appraisal process in your organization and what is expected of you.

Numerous books, training workshops, and videos deal with the appraisal process in much more detail. The purpose of this chapter is to make you aware of the purposes and benefits of using performance appraisal as a performance management tool—not to provide you with comprehensive training in the appraisal process.

WORKING WITH DIFFICULT EMPLOYEES

The term “difficult employees” is really a misnomer and doesn’t do either employees or supervisors much good. What we really mean is that there are employees who have difficult behaviors from time to time that cause supervisors and even other employees to have a negative reaction. If we are honest with ourselves, we will probably admit that someone else could even sometimes describe us as being difficult. If you don’t think so, ask your spouse, significant other, a friend, a parent, a son or daughter, or—if you really want to get risky—your boss. Most likely they can cite one or more incidents in which you were difficult. Therefore, this section focuses on behaviors that might be considered difficult—rather than some group of employees with an incorrect label.

Types of Difficult Behaviors

Difficult behaviors do not occur naturally in people (admittedly there may be a small fraction born with some mental disorder, but these are relatively few); instead, these difficult behaviors tend to be made. Some of the difficult behaviors you may observe in your employees from time to time are:

• Negative actions or words

• Non-productivity

• Sarcasm

• Unhappiness

• Untrustworthiness

• Poor attendance

• Poor listening

• Disruptiveness

• Unwillingness to make changes

• Lack of focus

Since these behaviors are outside of what we expect from our employees, we are quick to label the employees as difficult. Rather than hang that label on someone who may just be having a bad hour or a bad day, think about it in terms of the employee’s specific behavior.

Causes of Difficult Behaviors

Why do some people exhibit these negative behaviors? In most cases they are the result of the environment they live and work in (yes, you could be the cause of the difficult behavior) as well as the pressures and stresses brought on by everyday living. One aspect that is different is that some people tend to exhibit these negative behaviors longer and more frequently than others. One reason is that the negative behaviors are not dealt with when they first appear. As a result they tend to feed on themselves and get worse as time goes on.

As a first-line supervisor you have to deal with the negative behaviors as soon as you become aware of them. You can’t let them stretch out over several hours or even days. The longer they last, the more difficult they are to address. Dealing with negative behaviors in a timely and appropriate manner can improve morale and reduce internal conflicts. Unresolved, however, these behaviors seem to promote additional, similar problems, and people then become inclined toward less desirable behavior. Your action or inaction impacts whether the cycle remains negative or becomes positive. When negative behaviors are resolved in a positive way, the result is often improved morale and a better working environment.

As a first-line supervisor, you have the authority and power to deal with these difficult behaviors. Though you must act decisively, you should obtain all the facts before acting. Even if you have empathy, good communication skills, and an impartial attitude, you will not be able to eliminate all difficult behaviors. However, such attributes can and do make a difference when trying to deal with such behaviors.

Strategies for Working with Difficult Behaviors

You can use a number of procedures to address difficult behaviors without disrupting morale or performance. In certain situations, these procedures benefit morale. But keep in mind that any anger or other negative conduct on your part only escalates difficult behavior, reduces your ability to motivate, and cripples performance.

Focus on the Behavior

Remember what was said earlier—we aren’t dealing with difficult employees, but with difficult behaviors. If you focus on the person, chances are he or she will react negatively. In some cases, the employee may even try to turn the tables on you and put the focus on you instead. It is important that you control your own emotions, remain calm, and focus on the behavior that needs to be addressed.

Use “I” Messages

One of the best techniques, and sometimes most difficult, is to replace the pronoun “you” with the pronoun “I.” Instead of saying, “You really made me mad when you argued with that customer,” try saying, “I really get mad when someone argues with me when I’m a customer.” By the keeping the “you” out of the statement it puts the emphasis on the behavior not on the person. Putting it in terms of how it affects you (“I” in the example) also helps keep the discussion from becoming personal.

Determine the Cause of the Behavior

The best way to deal with the behavior is head-on. Don’t beat around the bush. Begin by asking questions about the behavior. At this point still try to avoid using “you” and try to focus on what “I” or “we” can do about the behavior. Begin to demonstrate a commitment to help the person eliminate the behavior. Some questions you might use are:

• What caused the problem?

• What else could have been done?

• How would someone else have handled that?

• What can I do to help?

• When did the problem first occur?

Develop a Plan for Improvement

Once you have determined the cause of the difficult behavior, there needs to be a plan for improving or eliminating the behavior. The best plan is one that is made by the employee as long as it meets with your approval. The use of “you” is appropriate at this stage as you ask questions about what can be done. Now you want the employee to start thinking about what changes he or she will make. For example:

• What do you think we should do?

• What do you think would work best?

• What would you like to do?

• When do you plan to make the change?

Get a Commitment

Once the plan is decided on, get a commitment from the employee that the change will be made and when. If possible, of course, you want the change to be made immediately and the difficult behavior eliminated. There may be extenuating circumstances, however, that affect when the change can be implemented. In some cases (if the behavior has been happening for a long time) you may even want to get a written commitment. Generally, though, a verbal agreement is best because it doesn’t seem as drastic to the employee. The key to making the commitment work is to follow up. Make sure you take time to verify that the difficult behavior has been eliminated.

Exercise 4: What Would You Do?

INSTRUCTIONS: Read each of the situations below and then briefly describe what you would do.

1. You received an e-mail this morning from Jill, who has worked in your department for three months. She complained that she had to work late the last two days to get her work done and that she wasn’t going to do it again tonight. She complained about the workload and said that it was unfair for her to have to put in the extra hours. Furthermore, she said she was planning to leave an hour early today to make up for the extra hours she had worked. You know that she is exaggerating because she only worked an extra fifteen minutes on Monday and an extra thirty minutes on Tuesday. What would you do?

______________________________________________________

______________________________________________________

2. During your daily production meeting with Rod, he said he was having a problem getting employees to put their tools away at the end of their shifts. They say that since there is only one shift a day, putting their tools away and then getting them out again the next day wastes time. If they have to keep doing it, they say they will “slow down” their work for a couple of days. Rod said he agreed with the other employees and wants you to change the policy. Already, one expensive tool has turned up missing. What would you do?

______________________________________________________

______________________________________________________

Suggested Answers:

1. First, you need to set up a meeting with Jill to address the issue face to face. Don’t respond to her e-mail and get into a back and forth exchange of e-mails that could go on all day. When you meet, ask her why she has been working the extra time and ask her for suggestions on how she could get her work done within normal hours. Then, ask what you can do to help. Together agree on a solution. You also need to get agreement on whether she will be leaving early today since she should have asked—not told—you about leaving early. Be sure to follow up on her commitment.

2. Tools are expensive and necessary in order to get the work done. The company can’t afford to have them turn up missing. Call a shift meeting to clearly communicate the reasons behind the policy and make sure everyone understands it. Use “I” messages as much as possible and focus on the importance of following the policy. You may also want to ask the employees for their input on what you can do to help them ensure the policy is followed. Ask for their renewed commitment to the policy and then follow up to see that tools are put away at the end of today’s shift.

MANAGING WORKPLACE CONFLICT

Conflict in the workplace may be inevitable. No matter how hard you try to keep everyone focused, provide regular feedback, and deal with issues in a timely manner, conflict occurs. Unresolved conflicts can contribute to poor performance. As a first-line supervisor, you have the responsibility and obligation to settle many conflicts. Failure to do so may only worsen the conflict.

Keep in mind, however, that some conflict can be healthy. Although our initial reaction is usually that conflict is a negative thing, it can be a good sign. When there is no conflict it can be sign that people are complacent, bad ideas are not challenged, and people aren’t being totally honest with each other. In this section we take a look at some of the common causes of conflict and some of the things you can do when it happens.

Causes of Conflict

Understanding why conflict occurs is necessary in order to be able to manage conflict situations in an effective manner. What follows is not intended to be an exhaustive list, but rather some of the more common causes of workplace conflict.

Different Priorities

Sometime employees have different ideas about what is the most important priority. For example, two employees may be working on different parts of the same project. Each may think that their part is the highest priority. A conflict can arise over who should have access to resources first in order to get the assigned part of the project done.

Making Assumptions

Conflicts often arise when one person makes an assumption about another person’s actions or intentions. Rather than communicating with the other person, the first person assumes he or she knows what the other person is thinking or planning to do. When he or she acts on assumptions that turn out to be wrong, a conflict can occur. Sometimes this conflict can be imaginary because the first person has created a conflict in his or her mind based on an incorrect assumption.

Different Values

A conflict can occur when two people put a different value on something. For example, one person may value getting things done as quickly as possible regardless of the quality. When that person is assigned to work with someone who thinks that quality is more important than speed, their different values can lead to conflict. Or, one person thinks the way a person dresses at work is important whereas another person thinks getting the job done is more important than how one is dressed.

Different Knowledge/Experience

Different levels of knowledge and experience can also cause conflict. One person may make a decision based on previous knowledge and experience. The decision seems obvious and logical to that person. Someone with a different level of knowledge or experience, however, may not understand why the decision was made. Based on their own knowledge and experience, they would make a different decision. Unless they are willing to discuss their reasons with each other, the conflict likely won’t be resolved.

Different Personalities

People are different—that’s a statement of the obvious. It would be boring if we were all the same. Many of the differences among people are positive and make for good working relationships because people skills, abilities, and interests complement each other. It’s also a fact that different personalities can lead to conflicts. One person takes everything very seriously whereas another seems to find humor in every situation. Put these two people together and conflict may result.

Different Perceptions

People see things differently, which can lead to conflict. One person sees problems as something to be avoided at all costs. Another person welcomes problems because he or she enjoys the challenge of solving them. As the saying goes, one person sees the glass half empty while the other sees it as half full. Their differing perceptions can lead to doing different things.

Conflict Management Styles

Your approach to resolving your own conflicts is likely to be the same approach you use when trying to resolve a conflict between two of your employees. Being aware of your preferred conflict management style can be helpful as you try to resolve conflicts. Listed below are five conflict management styles that you might use to resolve a conflict you have with another person. One style is not necessarily better than another. You may find that you need to consider using a different conflict management style than the one you prefer, based on the nature of the conflict. In other words, you may have to adapt your style to resolve the conflict.

Competition

A person pursues his or her own concerns in a confrontational, assertive, and aggressive manner. This is a power-oriented role, in which a person uses whatever power seems appropriate to win—based on his or her ability to argue, having a higher rank, or using economic sanctions. Competing might mean survival of the fittest, defending a position you believe is correct, or simply trying to win to prove one’s own superiority.

Accommodation

This is the opposite of competition. This person is agreeable and non-assertive because he or she does not want to risk damaging relationships. When accommodating, an individual is cooperative even at the expense of personal goals. There is an element of self-sacrifice. Accommodating might include obeying another person’s order when one would prefer not to, or yielding to another’s point of view.

Avoidance

The person is non-confrontational and ignores or passes over issues. He or she denies there is a problem and tends to view differences as too minor or too great to resolve. He or she thinks that attempting to solve the conflict could create even greater problems. Avoiding might take the form of diplomatically sidestepping an issue, postponing an issue until a better time, or simply withdrawing from a threatening situation.

Collaboration

This is the opposite of avoiding. There is high respect and mutual support between parties. Collaborating involves an attempt to work with the other person to find some solution that fully satisfies the concerns of both. It means openly discussing an issue to identify the underlying concerns of the two individuals and finding a mutually beneficial solution. Collaborating can be both assertive and cooperative as two people openly explore a disagreement in order to find a creative solution. The goal is to resolve the conflict that would otherwise have them competing for resources.

Compromise

The objective is to find some expedient, mutually acceptable solution that partially satisfies both parties. It falls in a middle ground between competing and accommodating. This person says that no one person or idea is perfect and that there is more than one good way to do anything. Compromise gives up more than competing but less than accommodating. Likewise, it addresses an issue more directly than avoiding, but doesn’t explore it in as much depth as collaborating. Compromising can include splitting the differences, exchanging concessions, or seeking a middle-ground position.

These style descriptions are adapted from the Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Mode Instrument by Kenneth W. Thomas and Ralph H. Kilmann. The instrument and related support materials are available from various sources on the Internet.

Exercise 5: What’s Your Conflict Management Style?

INSTRUCTIONS: Think about your own preferred conflict management style, and answer the following questions.

What is your preferred conflict management style?

________________________________________________

________________________________________________

What are the advantages of your preferred style?

________________________________________________

________________________________________________

What are the disadvantages of your preferred style?

________________________________________________

________________________________________________

What other style(s) would be useful? Why?

________________________________________________

________________________________________________

Steps for Successful Conflict Management

Regardless of the style you choose, your long-term objective is to resolve the conflict so that it does not become destructive to you, your employees, or the workplace. Let’s look at a process you can use when resolving conflicts.

Step 1: Take the Initiative to Resolve the Conflict

Some conflicts may go away if you avoid them, but most won’t. Instead it’s up to you to take responsibility for resolving the conflict. Your willingness to get involved communicates that you think it is important to have a workplace environment where people can get along and work together.

If those who are in conflict don’t come to you, go to them and let them know you are aware of the conflict. Explain that you want to help them resolve the situation. This is an important point. As the supervisor it is not your job to resolve the conflict. Your role is to be the mediator. You may, depending on the situation, offer some suggestions, but the main responsibility for solving the conflict has to be on the shoulders of those who are in conflict.

Step 2: Determine the Cause of the Conflict

Once you get those in conflict together, you have to determine the cause of their conflict. This may not be easy. It takes time and energy to get agreement on the cause of the conflict. You likely will have to deal with the emotions of the people involved. Let people express their feelings. This is a good time to get everything out on the table. There may even be multiple causes for the conflict. There are four steps you can take to help determine the cause of the conflict:

1. Establish ground rules

2. Ask questions

3. Listen

4. Maintain focus on solving the problem

1. Establish ground rules. Before people start talking you have to establish the ground rules to be followed during the discussion. Here are some ground rules you should consider for everyone involved:

• Be open and honest.

• Listen to the other person.

• Avoid being argumentative.

• State the facts and avoid opinions and feelings.

• Respect each other’s position.

2. Ask questions. Open-ended questions and probing questions and/or statements are needed to determine the real cause of the problem. Don’t be hesitant to follow up on what someone says with another question. Some examples are:

• What do you think caused the conflict?

• Why do you say that?

• Tell me more about that.

• What happened when you did that?

• How do you think (other person) feels about that?

• What do you think we should do now?

• How do you think others will feel if we do that?

3. Listen. Your listening skills are critical. It’s important that you hear what is being said and the meaning behind what is being said. Review the effective listening techniques in Chapter 3. Your ability to listen and maintain an open mind is essential if you want to get to the real cause of the conflict.

4. Maintain focus on solving the problem. When emotions, feelings, and opinions are involved it is easy to get sidetracked. Your job is to help maintain the proper focus. Here are some things you can do:

• Focus on ideas, not personalities.

• Acknowledge the merits of various points of view.

• Give people time to think as well as to talk.

• Respect people’s opinions.

• Keep focused on the problem at hand.

Step 3: Develop an Action Plan

Next, develop an action plan based on addressing what has been determined to be the cause of the conflict. Involve both parties in developing an action plan. As the supervisor, your role is to make sure the plan is acceptable to both parties and to yourself. Avoid letting one person dominate the development of the plan, otherwise the conflict is likely to recur or take on another form. If you have done a good job determining the cause of the conflict, the action required to resolve the conflict should be pretty obvious. The plan does not need to be elaborate, but it should answer the following questions:

• What changes will be made?

• Who will do what?

• If the conflict cannot be resolved immediately, what is the timeline?

Step 4: Follow Up

Don’t assume that just because there was agreement to a plan to resolve the conflict that everything will get back on track immediately. Conflicts that have built up over time are likely to require some time to be resolved. Make sure you take time to check back with both parties and find out how things are going. Start with individual meetings. If you still sense some underlying conflict, you may want to get them back together and repeat step three.

Once you are confident that the conflict has been resolved, as part of your follow-up provide positive feedback. This reinforces the changed behaviors and lets both parties know that you have noticed what they have done.

Exercise 6: Resolving Workplace Conflict

INSTRUCTIONS: Describe a workplace conflict that you had to help resolve.

____________________________________

____________________________________

What was the cause of the conflict?

____________________________________

____________________________________

What process did you use to resolve the conflict?

____________________________________

____________________________________

Has the conflict recurred? Why or why not?

____________________________________

____________________________________

What new ideas do you have after reading this chapter?

____________________________________

____________________________________

TAKING DISCIPLINARY ACTION

The whole concept of discipline has a negative connotation. We can give it a fancy name like performance improvement, constructive discipline, or positive discipline, but in the end it still doesn’t sound like much fun. So let’s face the reality—taking disciplinary action isn’t much fun. But then, it shouldn’t be. When a supervisor has to take disciplinary action it may not just be because of what the employee did or didn’t do, it may also be a result of something the supervisor did or didn’t do. In the final analysis, good employee performance is often the result of good supervision.

Focus on Behavior

There will be times that no matter how well you do your job as a supervisor, some employees won’t do what they are supposed to do and you have to take disciplinary action. There are two reasons for taking disciplinary action: to eliminate current undesirable behavior, and to prevent undesirable behavior in the future.

Throughout this chapter the focus has been on behavior—what the employee is doing that needs to be changed or eliminated. When taking disciplinary action, this is especially important. Avoid discussions that talk about the attitudes and the feelings of an employee; instead, stick to the behaviors you can observe. Otherwise the disciplinary discussion can become contentious and counterproductive.

Whenever you have a meeting with an employee to discuss behavior issues, document the meeting and place the documentation in the employee’s file. Some organizations have specific forms that are used for this purpose. If your organization does not, be sure the documentation you create has the date, a summary of what was discussed and agreed to, and both your and the employee’s signatures. This documentation can protect both you and your organization from unjustified claims for unemployment compensation and from complaints of discrimination or unfair labor practices. Exhibit 5–2 describes the steps to follow when taking disciplinary action.

Disciplinary Options

You can use several options when taking disciplinary action. Let’s look at them briefly:

• Oral Warning

• Written Warning

• Suspension

• Termination

Some organizations refer to these as steps in a progressive disciplinary process because the severity of the discipline increases with each option. First the employee gets an oral warning. If that doesn’t fix the behavior, a written warning follows. If the problem persists, then the employee is suspended. If the behavior still isn’t corrected, the employee is terminated. In some organizations, the nature of the behavior or the circumstances surrounding the behavior may sometimes dictate that action not follow this sequence. In some cases, suspension or even termination may be the first disciplinary action.

Oral Warning

An oral warning is used to let employees know that their behavior is unacceptable. Before you give an oral warning, you should use the corrective feedback process described earlier in this chapter. If the employee’s behavior does not improve following the corrective feedback, the oral warning serves as a stronger action. In this case you are warning the employee that his or her behavior must change. You should also make it clear that if the behavior doesn’t change, further disciplinary action will be taken. Remember the goal of giving the oral warning is to eliminate the unacceptable behavior.

Written Warning

In most cases you use a written warning after an oral warning has been given and there has been no change in behavior. The written warning lets the employee know that you still consider the behavior to be a serious problem. As its name implies, be sure to document the warning in writing. The documentation should follow a private meeting with the employee in which you focus on the behavior. If you have previous documentation about the behavior in question, review it at the meeting. When you give a written warning, be sure the employee understands what can happen next if the behavior does not change. Sometimes an employee’s behavior may improve after a written warning for an extended period of time. However, if the problem returns in the future you may want to repeat the written warning.

Suspension

Suspension is used when an employee has flagrantly violated an organization’s policy, or when you have reason to believe that a policy has been violated and you need time to investigate. In either case the employee should be asked to leave the premises. Suspension allows you to cool down if you are upset and it also allows time to conduct any necessary investigation into the behavior. The employee may or may not be paid during the suspension, depending on the organization’s policy. Depending on the results of the investigation, the employee may be reinstated, reassigned, or terminated. Suspension allows you to handle employee behavior problems in a timely and mature manner while at the same time ensuring that employees receive fair treatment.

Termination

Involuntary termination is a task most supervisors would rather avoid. The best way to avoid it is to focus on behavior problems when they first occur and before they get to an inappropriate level. Involuntary terminations may be necessary due to business conditions or for cause. Business conditions may include the elimination of a job or a temporary layoff. An employee may be terminated for cause when he has not responded to previous efforts to improve behavior or following a suspension when you find there is reason to terminate the employee. Before terminating an employee, be sure you have:

• Gathered the facts and previous documentation

• Discussed the situation with your supervisor

• Set a time and place for the termination meeting

• Completed all necessary paperwork

In most cases, involuntary termination is only used after repeated attempts to get the employee to change behavior using one or more of the other disciplinary actions.

You may also have to deal with voluntary terminations—when the employee makes the decision to quit. Most organizations have policies and procedures they follow for voluntary terminations, depending on the circumstances of the termination and the employee’s future plans. Some common alternatives are to have the employee quit working immediately, leave on a date desired by the employee, or leave on a date agreed to by both the organization and the employee. As with involuntary terminations, be sure you complete all necessary paperwork and follow your organization’s procedures. Sometimes you may leave the “door open” for the employee to return in the future, so be sure you handle the termination process in a professional manner.

Exercise 7: Taking Disciplinary Action

INSTRUCTIONS: Answer the following questions based on your own experience with disciplinary action.

What is your organization’s policy for disciplinary action?

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What types of disciplinary action have you had to take?

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Could the disciplinary action have been avoided? If so, how?

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What, if anything, did you do or not do that contributed to the need to take disciplinary action?

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What did you learn from the experience?

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This chapter discussed the importance of managing people. First, we examined the role of feedback in managing people. The use of feedback systems was discussed along with techniques for giving positive feedback. We also discussed the importance of using non-monetary rewards to motivate employees. Good first-line supervisors also use corrective feedback to motivate performance by focusing on an employee’s behavior, the effect of their behavior, the expectation for their performance, and the result—what will happen if behavior changes. The use of performance appraisal as a feedback tool was also discussed.

In the next part you learned that there are employees who exhibit difficult behaviors from time to time that cause supervisors and even other employees to have a negative reaction to them. You read about different types of difficult behaviors, the causes of difficult behaviors, and strategies for working with employees with difficult behaviors.

Next you learned about the possible causes of workplace conflicts. You learned about different ways to approach conflict and techniques you can use. You were also given a four-step process to follow to resolve workplace conflicts: take the initiative to resolve the conflict, determine the cause of the conflict, develop an action plan, and follow up.

Finally, we looked at taking disciplinary action. You learned about the importance of focusing on eliminating undesirable behavior. The options of oral warning, written warning, suspension, and termination were discussed. You were also reminded to follow your organization’s policies when taking disciplinary action.

Exercise 8: Taking It Back to the Workplace

INSTRUCTIONS: Now that you have completed the reading and the activities in this chapter, it’s time to think specifically about how to apply what you have learned. The following questions are designed to help you consider what you need to do to succeed back in the workplace.

What opportunities do you have to provide more positive feedback to your employees?

What type of feedback systems are you using?

How do you deal with employees with difficult behaviors?

How effective are you in resolving workplace conflicts?

What conflict management style do you use most often? How could you benefit from using a different style?

What process have you used when you have had to take disciplinary action?