As a team head you have many issues to deal with – from conflicts within the team, performance problems and even behaviour issues. But what if your team starts complaining about your biggest performer? How then would you deal with the situation? Prof. VGT has some wisdom.
Conflict within your team can indeed be a problematic issue. What are the choices you have? Do you chastise them, give counsel, or take stern action? You will have to solve the issue in the best possible manner so that you retain your star performer, and your team works without a hitch.
The employee in question might be an efficient worker. Maybe they always give their best in whatever they do, works with commitment, and has good interpersonal relations to boot. The only hitch might be that you receive complaints regarding his behavior from others in the team. The complaints may be anything from yelling at others, wanting to do everything themselves and not allowing others to share their work and even bullying those who do not accede to their demands.
As a team head, you are in a dilemma; you cannot fire your star performer nor antagonize other team members by refusing to take any action. The first thing to do in such a situation is to get the facts right. Your other team members may either underplay the whole issue or blow the facts out of proportion. The latter is more common. It can be a mistake to confront the concerned employee based on the reports you hear from others. This can create a bad impression, lower the opinion of employees about you and the organization and above all, lower the impact of your efforts to bring about a behavioural change.
A wise option is to confront the employee with at least three specific examples of their conduct, which is causing a problem to others.
Better still would be to observe the behaviour of the concerned employee and then talk to your star performer. Employees are more receptive to a boss who takes interest in their changes rather than one who advises them based on secondhand information.
When your high performer has more than one behaviour problem to be tackled, it is better that you prioritize the changes.Trying to tackle more than what you or the employee can handle at a single point of time can cause frustration and your attempts to bring a change could fail. Before meeting your employee, prioritize and plan the changes you want to bring about. For instance, the employee can first be coached to delegate work to others and based on his ability to change can be later coached to avoid bullying those who do not agree with them.
When you want to see a change, rather than talk about what is wrong in the employee’s behavior, project the desirable behavior you would like to see. Also emphasize the benefits the change will bring about to the individual and in his relations with other team members. This will act as a motivation for change and make the employee more receptive to your advice and consequently modify his behaviour.
Call your high performer for a meeting and both of you can draw up a plan on how to implement the changes in behavior and the results you expect. Be sure to give regular feedback and positive reinforcement when you observe a change. Talk to the employees on a regular basis to discuss his progress and give additional advice.
Some more pointers on changing employee behaviour:
- When wanting a change, focus on the behavior of the person and avoid personal criticism. Remember, you will have to change the behaviour, not the person.
- Put yourself in the other person’s shoes and think on those factors that might be motivating them to behave that way. Listen to what they have to say and think before you speak.
- When talking to the person, be soft but firm and stay calm even if the person is agitated.
- Appeal to the person’s self-interest. Tell the other person how the change in behavior will be beneficial to them.
- Be prompt in expressing your appreciation when you see the desired change.
Despite your and your star performer’s success in bringing about a change in behaviour, if the other team members still complain, then it is time for a rethink. Probably you need to focus on improving the interpersonal relations in your team. Good teams are known to come together and help one another succeed. Members help each other remove individual impediments that stand in the way. If your team lacks these qualities, then it is time they are coached on cohesiveness for the greater success of the team.
