If you visit www.youtube.com/coachjudynelson or my website: http://www.coachjudynelson.com/, you will see four new videos that I believe you will find very interesting.
One addresses the familiar issue of managing the underperforming manager. Who hasn't had one? Who hasn't struggled with how to handle him or her?
It's not as difficult to handle an underperforming manager if the individual is cranky, impossible to get along with or unethical. It's extremely difficult, if the individual is a friendly soul or handicapped in some way or in a protected class, i.e., age, gender, life style, race, etc.
Handling the situation of an underperforming manager is NEVER easy. That's particularly true if we haven't followed procedures or best management practices since Day One. So often, we see an issue and let it go because it's too much work to bring it up. Or we don't want to hurt someone's feelings. Or we're worried that they will cause a scene. And then another concern surfaces and we let that one go, too. Pretty soon, the other staff start to resent the fact that they are being held accountable but not this particular manager. They have to pick up the slack so they work harder and are accountable while the offender does less with no consequences. Bitterness sets in. Irritability surfaces. Team meetings become something that has to be endured. It's the elephant in the room syndrome again.
The first question is obviously, why did we let it go so long? But that's a topic for another day. This video deals with what to do when we finally decide to do something.
There are several issues to deal with before saying anything to the underperforming manager. The first is one that I refer to as "Fix You, First!" The executive needs to make an appointment with her/himself--for at least an hour--uninterrupted, and with the computer and phones OFF. Take a look at yourself. What management style are you modeling? Are you guilty of any of the behaviors or performance that the manager is? Are you sure. Take a good, honest look at yourself.
If you think you are not guilty, how does your staff perceive you in these areas and others? Have you asked for their feedback? When was the last time you had a 360 evaluation? Did you like the results? Have you done anything about the results you didn't like? Did you have the courage to share the results with the people who evaluated you? If not, do it now.
While you're reflecting on your own performance, take a close look at your interpersonal skills-or lack thereof. Are you a yeller? Do you blame others when things go wrong? Do you give feedback to your staff frequently with specific details? How do you show that you value them?
Once you've given attention to your own stuff, and set up a plan of improvement, you may be ready to work on the underperforming manager but not until.
The first step is to review the personnel file and take a look at your last evaluation of this manager. Did you specifically mention the problem behaviors in that review? If not, shame on you! If you did, has there been followup? Change? improvement? Did the manager respond to the evaluation?
Now it's time to set an appointment for a private, uninterrupted talk in a neutral zone--not your office or their office. It is your job and your duty to inform the manager respectfully, directly and specifically what you are concerned about--but about the performance, not the person! Ask the manager for his/her response and suggestions as to what can be done to improve this performance. Tell the individual that it is your goal to help them succeed and ask what they need from you to make the required changes.
Let's stop here so that you can review these concepts to see if they make sense to you. Next time we will delve more into what to do next.
To learn more about what Executive Coaching can do for you, take a few seconds to watch the video below.
Here's to better Managing!
Judy Nelson, JD, MSW
Certified Professional Coach
www.CoachJudyNelson.com
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment