"When managing difficult employees, if it isn't written down it's as if it didn't happen." ~ Colleen Kettenhofen

Many managers and supervisors are promoted to leadership positions based on their "hard skills" or technical skills. Yet few of them have had training in the area of managing people, especially managing difficult people. In conducting management and leadership keynotes and seminars, one of the biggest challenges managers and supervisors tell me they face is how do you manage a difficult employee? You can't control them, but you CAN control their environment. The hope is that you'll be coaching them to better performance.

Here are 10 Management Tips for Managing Difficult People:

1. Document, document, document. As far as the courts are concerned, if it isn't written down it's as if it didn't happen. Even if you have a prospective employee sign a form saying they know they can be terminated at any time, without cause, and without warning or reason. You never want to terminate without proper documentation. Terminating an employee without cause, reason, or prior warning(s) can make it easier for the difficult person to win a wrongful termination lawsuit.

You may be thinking, "Colleen, isn't this common-sense?" Yes, but common-sense isn't so common. Not everyone is aware of this.

2. Document training and coaching when managing difficult people. Any type of training you provide for your difficult employee is considered coaching. In managing difficult people, many assume that the documentation you're doing is to build a case for termination. It is not! It's really to show everything you did to try and SAVE the difficult employee. This also includes training. Whether you trained the difficult employee, someone else trained them, or you sent them to a seminar to learn how to perform better on the job. All of it is considered coaching and training.

3. Avoid the word attitude. Why would you want to avoid saying to your difficult employee, "Pat, I don't like your attitude"? Because it's too subjective. It's not specific enough.

4. Focus instead on specific behaviors or on the quality of their work. For example, what should you do if every time you delegate a special project to the difficult person, they fold their arms, exhale loudly, roll their eyes and sarcastically mutter under their breath, "Whatever"? You would say in a low controlled tone something like, 'Pat, every time I delegate a special project to you, the arms are folded, you're rolling your eyes, and muttering under your breath, 'whatever.' What seems to be the cause of this?" (Notice I list specific behaviors.)

5. Be objective, not subjective. Focus on facts. As mentioned earlier, when managing difficult people, be objective by mentioning specific behaviors - or specific declines in the quality of their work. For example, when documenting the employee's "attitude," you might document the following: "Every time I delegated a special project to Pat so-and-so, he/she would fold their arms, exhale loudly, roll their eyes, and mutter under their breath, whatever.'" If this were ever read by a jury, or your Human Resources department, or manager, they would have a clear picture of this difficult employee's attitude.

6. When managing difficult people, it's imperative that you make their goals and objectives specific, measurable, quantifiable, and in writing for accountability.Provide specific examples of the behavior or quality of work you expect. Put it in writing so that the employee is held accountable. When managing difficult people, it's imperative that you make their goals and roles clear. When conducting keynotes and seminars on managing difficult people, it's amazing how many people confide to me that their own work goals are not clearly defined. Let's say someone you manage performs clerical work. An example of a specific goal (in writing) would be that they are to "correct and proofread all required reports for the Quality Control department within three days of receiving them."

7. Be aware of how you present YOURSELF. When managing people, especially managing difficult people, you are still the role model. Be aware of your eye contact. When you're speaking with them one-on-one, look at the person for two to five seconds at a time. Don't look away as you'll be perceived as passive, but you also don't want a stare down contest to prove your dominance! It's worth noting that in some cultures, children are brought up that it's disrespectful to have eye contact with elders. So for some people, they're having to unlearn old habits. It's not necessarily that they're disrespecting you or not listening.

Whenever and wherever I'm speaking, personality styles training, culture, and diversity have increasingly become popular topics.

8. Be clear and concise in spelling out the consequences if the difficult employee doesn't improve. For example, if this is a verbal warning, you could say to the employee in a low, controlled tone, "Right now this is a verbal warning. As our handbook policy states, if there isn't sustainable and maintained improvement within the next 30 days, it could result in further disciplinary action. In managing difficult people, you never want them to be able to say that they weren't warned, or "I didn't know."

9. Get at the root cause of what is causing the difficult employee behavior. Would they rather work in a different department? Is it something in their personal life? Or have they simply been allowed to get away with it for too long, and now you have to be the bad guy. This happens frequently!

10. When managing difficult people it's imperative that you conduct follow-up performance related meetings with the difficult employee. Why? First, it's what the courts want to see - even if you're state is "At Will." Second, it does the employee a great disservice if they make a big turnaroun and you don't acknowledge it.

According to research, one of the main reasons why employee improvement plans fail is due to lack of follow up on the part of the leader.

All of these tips are discussed in greater detail in my leadership programs. This advice is basic and you've heard it before but are you applying it? I like to say that when managing difficult people, most of us know what to do. We just don't always "do" with what we know. Good luck!!

Colleen Kettenhofen's topics are customized to your needs, themes, and objectives--no two are alike. Her programs are presented in a positive, upbeat manner, and she always stresses personal accountability.

For Colleen's speaking availability and fees, please call (623)340-7690.