13 confront direct reports

8/17/2019 13 Confront Direct Reports

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13. CONFRONTING DIRECT REPORTS

UNSKILLED

• Not comfortable delivering negative messages to direct reports• Procrastinates and avoids problems until forced to act

• May not communicate clear standards or provide much feedback

• Lets problems fester hoping they will go away

• May give in too soon to excuses

• May give people too many chances

• Can’t pull the trigger even when all else has failed

• Has low standards or plays favourites

SKILLED

• Deals with problem direct reports firmly and in a timely manner

• Doesn’t allow problems to fester

• Regularly reviews performance and holds timely discussions

• Can make negative decisions when all other effects fail

• Deals effectively with troublemakers

OVERUSED SKILL

• May be too quick to act on problem direct reports

• May not put enough developmental effort toward the problem

• May expect turnarounds in too short a time

• May expect miracles

Select one to three of the competencies listed below to work on to compensate

for an overuse of this skill.

COMPENSATORS: 3, 7, 12, 19, 20, 21, 23, 31, 33, 36, 41, 56, 60, 64

Copyright © 1996-2004 Michael Lombardo and Robert W. Eichinger. All rights reserved


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managers applying standards to others for the first time. Make sure everyone

under you knows what you expect of him/her and where he/she stands.

2. Creating and communicating standards

Are your problem performers confused? Do they know what’s expected of

them? You may not set clear enough performance standards, goals and

objectives. You may be a seat of the pants manager, and some people are

struggling because they don’t know what is expected or it changes. You may

be a cryptic communicator. You may be too busy to communicate. You may

communicate to some and not to others. You may have given up on some and

stopped communicating. Or you may think they would know what to do if

they’re any good, but that’s not really true because you have not properly

communicated what you want. The first task is to outline the 5 to 10 key

results areas and what indicators of success would be. Involve your problem

direct reports on both ends, the standards and the indicators. Provide themwith goals and standards are usually harder on themselves than you’ll ever be.

Often they set higher standards than you would. More help? – See #35

Managing and Measuring Work.

3. Realism

They are not performing up to standard? It’s common to see 90 day improve-

or-else plans that no one can accomplish. Be more strategic, improve your

interpersonal skills, learn about the business, be less arrogant. Ask yourself

how long did it take you to become proficient at what you are criticising this

person for? Because managers hesitate delivering negative messages, we get

to people late. Sometimes the last five mangers this person reported to saw the

same difficulty, but none of them confronted the person. Get to people as soon

as they do not meet agreed upon standards of performance. Don’t wait. Early

is the easiest time to do it with the highest return on investment for you, them

and the organisation. Most people who have reached the problem performer

status will take one to two years to turn around under the best of

circumstances. It’s cruel and unusual punishment to require a fixed time turn

around or improvement plan. If your organisation demands a 90 day wonder,

fight it. Tell them that while a bit of improvement can be seen in that period,substantive change is not like producing a quarterly earnings statement.

4. Starting the improve or you’re gone process

The first meeting. After you have made the assessment that a direct report just

isn’t making it, document your observations against the standards and arrange

the first tough meeting. Experience directs that these first tough meeting

should always be in the beginning of the week and in the mornings. They

should not occur on Fridays or the day before holidays when most managers

deliver them. They should not be at a time when the unit is on a bomb rungetting ready for a big presentation. Start the meeting by saying “we” have a



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performance issue to talk about and fix. Be succinct. You have limited

attention span in tough feedback situations. Don’t waste time with a long

preamble, just get to it. The recipient is likely to know the feedback is negative

anyway so go ahead and say it first. They won’t hear or remember anything

positive you have to say anyway. Don’t overwhelm the person, even if you

have a lot to say. Pick the key areas and stick to them. Keep it to the facts andtheir impact on you, them and your unit. Talk about specific events and

situations. Plan for enough time. This is not a process to rush.

5. Go in with an improvement plan

Don’t criticise without a solution and a plan. Tell the person what you want –

paint a different outcome. Don’t expect him/her to guess, and don’t spend a lot

of time rehashing the past. Suggest steps both of you can take to remedy the

problem. Be positive but firm. Be constructive. Be optimistic in the beginning.

Help him/her see the negative consequences and the potential timing – you canask what he/she thinks and you can tell him/her what the consequences are for

your side. Change starts with seeing an unacceptable consequence and a way

out. Improve or else threats don’t work. More help? – See #19 Developing

Direct Reports.

6. Managing the pushback

Keep control of the discussion. Don’t do fake listening – the obligatory “Now

let’s hear your side” if you don’t think there is another side. Discussions like

this will trigger most people’s natural defence routines. Expect that. That’s not

necessarily a sign of true disagreement or denial; it’s just a natural thing to do.

Say something like, “I understand you have a different view, but the

performance just isn’t there in this area. We’ve got to deal with this.” The

person may have 10 reasons why your appraisal isn’t fair or accurate. Listen.

Acknowledge that you understand what he/she has said. If the person persists,

say “Let’s talk about your view tomorrow after we’ve both had a chance to

reflect on this discussion.” Then, return to your agenda. Say, “I’m going to

help you perform in this area.” The best tack is to immediately schedule new

work, trusting that the person will come through this time. You should discuss

this as you would any other work assignment and not bring up the past. She/hehas already heard what you said. (With a person who, in your opinion, lacks

motivation not skill, raise the stakes. Sometimes a person who performs

poorly at a C difficulty task performs well at an A difficulty task in exactly the

same area.)



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7. Defence condition four

Emotions can run high. This may truly be a surprise to the person. Even

though this problem has been going on for years, this may be the first time a

manager has dealt with it directly. Don’t take too seriously what people say inthat first meeting. He/she is running on emotion. Mentally rehearse for worst

case scenarios. Anticipate what the person might say and have responses

prepared so as not to be caught off guard. Work on your stands through mental

interrogation until you can clearly state in a few sentences what you stand is

and why you hold it. Remain composed and don’t use words you’ll regret. If

he/she is not composed, don’t respond. Just let him/her vent or even cry, then

return to the problem at hand. Don’t forget the pathos of the situation – even if

you’re totally right, feelings will run high. If you have to knock someone

down, you can still empathise with how he/she feels or you can help pick

him/her up later when the discussion turns more positive. Allow him/her to

save face; concede some small points; don’t rush the human process ofgrieving. More help? – See #12 Conflict Management.

8. The next day

Go by and see the person the next day; don’t have him/her come to your

office. Ask him/her how he/she feels. Don’t back off your points, just allow

him/her to talk. Indicate you will pitch in and help, that you consider it your

job to remove obstacles to performance, provide information and support,

provide structure and advice on how, but not tell the person how to do it, and

be available fro trouble shotting. consciously try to maintain the same or a

closer relationship after the event. If the person feels written off, the situation

can turn hopeless. Schedule regular checkpoints. Use a ruler you a both relate

to. Track progress. If appropriate at some later time, ask the person for

feedback on you as a manager. More help? – See #7 Caring About Direct

Reports.

9. The two-minutes warning

The last chance for the person who isn’t really trying. You may have to pullsomeone aside after a couple of months and say, “I understand all your issues

had have tried to help you, but you aren’t doing what we agreed. Are you

committed or not?” If you have to do something like the above, follow the

rules of dealing with conflict: depersonalise; keep it on the problem, not the

person. Try one last time to help. Note the person’s concerns or objections or

description of what’s getting in the way but don’t concede anything. Be clear;

now is not the time for negotiation. Give the person a day to think it over and

come in with a believable performance improvement plan. At this point it’s

his/her problem. Be prepared to act immediately if the plan is insufficient.

Obviously, you will have gotten any necessary clearances in advance and

sought the help of Human Resources and Legal.



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10. Saying good-bye

Just because the person can’t do this job doesn’t mean he/she is incompetent

as a person or that he/she can’t do 50 other things better than you can do them.

Do nothing to generalise one performance failure to other situations, and point

to the person’s strengths in any way you can. Suggest what would be a better job match. Indicate what you can do to help; if you’re willing to be a reference

for certain types of work, say so. Make the meeting short. Go back to see the

person later and talk about his/her feelings if he/she is willing. You don’t have

to respond, just listen. Come up with some sort of parting gesture that

indicates to the person that you are not rejecting him or her; it was simply a

matter of one job that wasn’t a fit. A party, a note, a phone call – whatever you

can do that’s genuine. Even if he/she rejects you, if you meant it, that’s all you

can do.


13 confront direct reports

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