Delivering Bad News Effectively and Tactfully

To run a successful business you must not only communicate well with your customers you must also have good communication with your employers as well.   When managing others it is very important to consider the best ways to deal with conflict.   Eric Brahm tells us that, “The potential for conflict exists whenever people have different needs, values, or interests” (2003).  So this boils down to almost every situation. 

For this post I was asked to consider a certain scenario and how to deal with it effectively and tactfully.

“You are a department manager in a mid-sized company that provides technology support services.  You have ten employees who are required to maintain a high level of technical expertise and deliver excellent customer service.  One of your employees, who has been with the company for two years, is performing at a substandard level and you have received numerous complaints from customers and coworkers.  In addition, this employee has displayed confrontational behavior which has created a hostile environment.  You must now meet with this employee and deliver an ultimatum regarding the need for immediate improvement or dismissal.”

There are a few things to consider beforehand to prepare for your meeting.  Think about the location of the meeting.  It is not wise to confront employees in front of others or where others can overhear.  Pick a quite location that is conductive to a good outcome.    Consider creating a nurturing environment.  Abigail and Cahn put it like this,  “If we feel safe enough to assert our interests, needs, and goals; listen to others; and collaborate in interpersonal conflicts, we are more likely to achieve mutually satisfying outcomes” (Abigail & Cahn, 2011, p. 117).

Although many people delay and procrastinate in delivering bad news because of the fear of confrontation it is not a good idea.  By avoiding the situation you can cause even more harm to your business as well as making the confrontation worse by surprising the employee if they had no prior warning as to the issues.  So resolve issues early!

In any situation that there is potential for conflict it is best to be well informed to before the confrontation begins.  In this case it would be imperative to have all the complaints that have been received documented.  In addition to this types of confrontational behavior that has been displayed in the past should be well documented and available as well.   This statement deserves to be repeated, document, document, document.  In some circles otherwise known as CYB  (Cover Your Business… )

Whenever you must deliver bad news it is a very good idea to also emphasize the positive.  The above employee has been at the company for two years.  You may consider starting the conversation with a positive note on the employees length of employment, maybe they are always on time, never miss work, answer more phone calls that every other employee in the company.  Find some positive attribute to emphasize in the conversation.  When delivering this news have a solution to the problem in hand.   Of course we know there is the one solution listed, fix it or get the boot!  Consider other ways that the employee can fix the problem.   The most important thing to remember is that everyone deserves to be treated with dignity and respect.

References:

Abigail, R.A. and Cahn, D.D. (2011). Managing Conflict Through      

     Communication, P. 117

Brahm, Eric. "Conflict Stages." Beyond Intractability. Eds. Guy

     Burgess and Heidi Burgess. Conflict Information 

     Consortium, University of Colorado, Boulder. September 

     2003, retrieved from: 

     

     www.beyondintractablitiy.org/bi-essay/conflict-stages 

   .