Delivering Bad News Tactfully and Effectively

It is never easy to give bad news. It is even harder to be on the receiving end. One never knows how one is going to take bad news; will the news be received as well as can be expected considering the nature of the news? Or could the outcome become one with a tragic end? In order to have a positive outcome in these types of situations, it is important to come prepared with the right tools.

Consider this situation:

“You are a department manager in a mid-sized company that provides technology support services. You have ten employees who are required to maintain a high level of technical expertise and deliver excellent customer service. One of your employees, who has been with the company for two years, is performing at a substandard level and you have received numerous complaints from customers and coworkers. In addition, this employee has displayed confrontational behavior which has created a hostile environment. You must now meet with this employee and deliver an ultimatum regarding the need for immediate improvement or dismissal,” (Serra, 2012).

This particular situation has the potential to become even more toxic than it already is. Questions that come to mind are how long has the substandard behavior gone on? Is this behavior something that has been ongoing, or is this something that has just recently started? Are there are other factors that may be going on outside of work which may be affecting his work performance, such as marital problems or financial difficulties?  Does the employee feel overwhelmed? Have they received additional responsibilities that they cannot keep up with? Do the need assistance in prioritizing their workload? The first step to resolution is to accurately assess and to define the problem. “You need to be clear on what the problem is, and what changes need to be made” (Needleman, 2006). Once the problem has been defined, the next steps are to meet with the company’s human resource and legal departments to determine how to proceed with resolution."Internal friction can affect a company’s bottom line” (Goforth, 2000). Complaints from external customers can be detrimental to a business. “The trick is to control conflict and to channel it into something constructive” (Goforth, 2000).

 

Resolving employee complaints is a task that is time consuming. Managers spend “as much as 20 percent of their time resolving employee battles” (Goforth, 2000). Factor in the time of consulting with the company’s human resource and legal departments, it would seem that time being productive is lost. A loss in productivity, results in a loss of profit. Internal conflict can also result in the loss of good employees, who due to toxic, corrosive and non-conducive working environments, leave. Human resource departments have determined that the cause of these conflicts stem from management. Managers need to ensure that “they have a conflict resolving system as part of their organization structure” (Goforth, 2000) and that it is utilized.Once the problem has been identified, and the appropriate departments have been consulted, the next step would be to set up a meeting with the employee. I would utilize a collaboration technique to approach the situation. This would be an attempt to “work with the other person to find some solution which fully satisfies the concerns of both persons” (Blitman, 2002). A human resource representative should also be in attendance to document the meeting, as well as having the proper paperwork for all parties to sign off on once the meeting is complete. The facts should be presented to the employee, allowing the employee a chance to respond to the allegations. It should be understood to the employee that the behavior that has been displayed is not one that is tolerated and changes need to be made. A specific time should be allowed for the changes to take effect so everyone is on the same page. Alternatives should also be offered as well, such as employee assistance programs if there are problems outside of the workplace that are affecting the employee’s work. The question that should be resolved prior to meeting is “whether the disciplinary action is a punishment or an attempt to correct and change behavior” (Labig, 1996). If what is being conveyed is an attempt to correct and hange behavior, the news will be received favorably, as opposed to a punishment. The goal for the meeting is to have it as non-confrontational as possible. If the meeting does become confrontational, the meeting should quickly end before escalating to a dangerous level. Procedural guidelines should be in place to ward off any potential workplace violence. The meeting may potentially end with the employee being terminated. Potential termination should also be discussed and documented in the meeting so this way all parties are aware of the outcome. 

If termination is the final option, the employee needs to feel as if they have some “form of recourse” (Labig, 1996). If a person feels “powerless and hopeless, feelings of retaliation can take over” (Labig, 1996). It is important to let the employee know that they are important, even if the outcome is not favorable.