Delivering Bad News Tactfully and Effectively

In this case of delivering bad news to the employee, the first thing that I would do is prepare.  I would have all my facts in order; facts of the discussions and disciples that we have had in the past and the facts of the current substandard performance and the complaints I have received about the employee.

I would then anticipate the employee’s response.  I know that the employee will most likely become defensive, have excuses, be blaming others, and ultimately will not take any responsibility for their actions. 

I will bring the employee into the meeting in a private room so that we openly discuss the issues without any interruptions. I will open the conversation by explaining to them that we are here to discuss some substandard work performances.  I would be straight forward in stating the current issues.  “The manager should specifically describe the employee’s disruptive behaviors and attempt to get the employee to agree that a problem exists” ("Managing Difficult Employees and Disruptive Behaviors", 2011). 

I will then give the employee a chance to respond, being prepared for some sort of negative response.  When the employee starts to gets defensive and to blame others, I will focus on the specific facts of these situations.  I will try to get the employee to take responsibility for their actions by asking them open ended questions about the problems and by redirecting them when they get off course.

I will listen and give the employee every chance to respond.  I will close the conversation by telling the employee that I hold all of my employees to the same standards and at this time they are not meeting them.  I will make sure that the employee understands the seriousness of this issues and that we must now develop a plan for improvement.  I will then let the employee know that if these substandard performances do not improve, and since we have addressed these issues before, the next step will be termination.

The conflict resolution technique that I would use in this case is that of collaborating. 

You can focus on working together. Use this approach when the goal is to meet as many current needs as possible by using mutual resources. This approach sometimes raises new mutual needs. Collaboration can also be used when the goal is to cultivate ownership and commitment (How to Deal With Conflict, 2011).

By using this approach, hopefully the employee will take the opportunity to come up with ideas on how they can achieve higher performance levels, which must include some behavioral changes.  With us working together to come up with this plan, the employee will not only know exactly what is expected of them but also how they can achieve it.  This approach gives the employee the chance to take control of their situation and to make the changes needed in order to avoid communication.

References

"Managing Difficult Employees and Disruptive Behaviors". (2011). Retrieved July 30, 2011, from http://www.shrmindia.org: http://www.shrmindia.org/managing-difficult-employees-and-disruptive-behaviors

How to Deal With Conflict. (2011). Retrieved July 30, 2011, from http://managementhelp.org: http://managementhelp.org/interpersonal/conflict.htm