Sometimes swinging for the fences means just stating your opinion on a variety of things.
For Example:
As a manager,
one of the most important resources at your disposal is the employees are the
employees that work with you. In most cases, the company has spent a good deal
of money and time finding and training those individuals with the confidence
that they were the correct person for the specific position they were hired
into. This knowledge has to be one of the key points to remember any time a
manager must correct an underperformance issue or an attitude issue.
In the case
study that is given, it is important that any action that is to be taken is
taken in a timely manner. To wait even a few days after a complaint is filed
only allows an individual more time to repeat the offences. With an employee
who is noticeably making mistakes and is receiving complaints from customers,
action needs to be swift and decisive. In this particular case, the best
approach is in a more formal setting, rather than a conversation in the hallway
or at the water cooler. Formalizing the environment helps to set a serious tone,
and helps the employee understand the seriousness of the situation.
When calling in
the employee for this counseling session, one of the most rules to follow is
stay professional at all times. When discussing the performance concerns, it is
critical that you are honest and upfront regarding the concerns. The goal is
for both parties to come to a mutually acceptable resolution of the issues. In
order to do that, the individual must fully understand not only the concerns,
but also the seriousness of those concerns. In dealing with performance issues,
most people… “favor collaboration for managing conflicts. It requires that a
person believe that the concerns of the other person are as important as one’s
own and adopt the goal of finding mutually satisfying solutions to problems and
resolutions of issues, which takes time and effort. (Cahn 57) In order to find a mutually satisfying
solution, one of the most important things a manager can do is listen to what
the employee has to say and try to understand
the employee’s point of view. Once you have the perspective of the
employee, finding a solution to the problem becomes much easier. After
listening carefully, clarifying the standards that must be followed is
critical. From that point, the key is to
ask the employee if there is any reason why they cannot follow the guidelines
properly and have an honest discussion regarding what needs to be done. Putting
together a plan of action that has input from both the employee and the manager
will help both sides to commit to having a part in the development and
improvement of that employee. One key point is to ask verbally for the
commitment of the employee and also have both parties sign the action plan.
Both steps help to solidify the goals for improvement. Having done this, both
parties should feel that the counseling session has been a success.
Cahn,
Ruth Anna Abigail and Dudley D.. Managing Conflict Through Communication
VitalSource eBook for Ashford University, 4th Edition. Pearson Learning Solutions.
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