Have you all noticed a consistent theme running through my blogs? You know what I’m talking about – those comments about why hiring a professional problem solver makes good sense. When you think about it, hiring someone to help solve the problems makes sense from a few perspectives. It makes sense from the HR or personnel perspective. Having an objective set of eyes look at the problems or issues and take stock of the players involved is never a bad thing. From the financial perspective the funds expended to pay for the consultant will be more than made up for by the increased revenues coming from higher productivity, better morale, and greater effectiveness all around. Now think of your next stockholders meeting. How more comfortable are you going to be describing the increased productivity and revenues? Isn’t that a better prospect than having to hear from stockholders about what a lousy job you’re doing and what exactly are you doing to solve those problems? Any approach which increases revenues by implementing long term solutions to persistent problems can’t be all bad. Best of all, it will keep Aunt Nellie off your back – at least for a little while. Just that alone makes the hiring of a professional problem solver worth it, don’t you think?
Virginia Swisher
There are no words
In light of the unspeakable evil which took place Friday in Newtown, Connecticut, I ask simply that we all pause for a moment to remember the true innocents we lost yesterday. In this season of joy and celebration of the birth of the Prince of Peace, may He continue to be a beacon of faith and hope. May God also hold the families and friends of those lost yesterday gently in the palm of His hands.
You Think You’ve Got Problems?
I had a different idea for a blog article this week but – I made the mistake of watching a couple of talking heads tell the world how the federal government should fix the fiscal mess they’ve created and why the other side was completely wrong. If DC doesn’t do what they want the resulting fiscal crisis will be entirely the fault of the other party and people playing politics with the country’s future, etc., etc., etc. Fill in the name of any politician, it doesn’t matter. I’m a problem solver and if you’ve talked with me or visited my website you know that I truly believe that when reasonable people come together and act reasonably, there is no problem that can’t be solved. Well, I think I just found one. Your problems will probably pale in comparison when you think of the mess both political parties have created and now they’re acting like six year olds unwilling to admit that someone else’s idea may have merit. No one is exempt from this mess. So folks in DC, here’s the solution – put the shovels down. Do what every other business person in the country is trying to do – get the best common sense solutions identified and implement the one selected by consensus. Stop the politics until the problem is rectified. If you can’t be part of the solution at least stop being the problem. Get the heck out of the way and let the American people do what they do best – tackle the problem head on, find the solution and implement it.
Playground or Office?
As a supervisor, leader, or manager, are there times when you feel like you’re more of a playground monitor than a supervisor? Do you get the feeling that you’re spending 90% of your time on 5% of your staff? Is most of your time is spent refereeing employee disputes, almost to the point where you’re working overtime just to get your own work done? And the worst of it is that this isn’t the first time this has happened. Despite your best efforts, it keeps happening time and time again – same stuff, different faces.
We’ve talked before about this issue and the drastic solution of termination. But what if the termination doesn’t have the effect you thought it would? What will it take to solve this problem once and for all so you can go about doing your job?
When the situation gets to this point, it’s time to call in a professional problem solver. He or she brings a fresh perspective to the situation and has no other agenda than working with all the parties to find a realistic and lasting solution. The problem solver can facilitate effective communication that aids the correct identification of the problem, the root causes and viable solutions. You’ve tried everything you and the rest of the management team can think of. Why not try something different? What do you have to lose other than that chronic case of heartburn, bad morale, and Aunt Nellie’s nagging?
Holiday Greetings
To our regular visitors and readers and those who happen by once in a while – We want to wish each and every one of you a safe and Happy Thanksgiving.
But I can’t fail – I’m the boss!
Well, actually you can. Most of us who have been in leadership or management positions have failed at some point in our professional lives. Here’s the good news. If handled properly, failure isn’t all bad. None of us likes to fail but it happens despite our best efforts and intentions. We’re human and we make mistakes which lead to failure moments. What happens then? The real measure of success isn’t what you do when you’re on top. Patton once said that “success is how high you bounce when you hit bottom.” From our failures we can gain knowledge and experience. We can then use both to address the issue more appropriately, increasing the likelihood that we’ll succeed. Learning from failure is a good thing. Repeating the failure moments with the hope of a different outcome is, according to some, the definition of insanity.
Failure to resolve the personnel issues that continue to plague your organization is aggravating and frustrating. Recognizing the reasons for that failure and, more importantly, the limitations on your ability to resolve the issues is an important first step. Consulting with a professional problem solver may be the first step on the road to long lasting resolution and eventually success. As we’ve discussed before, the professional problem solver has no other agenda than helping you and your organization find the real causes for the problems and reaching a resolution that actually addresses the issues.
When failure looms its ugly head, and it will, accept the option and possible reality and call for reinforcements in the form of a professional problem solver. Then, when Aunt Nellie demands to know what you’re doing to resolve the problem ( and increase her monthly dividend payment) you’ll have a response which just might take the wind out of her sails. Even in the midst of failure, seeing Aunt Nellie speechless has to be a very satisfactory moment.
Things Don’t Seem Quite So Bad
When preparing this week’s blog, I was distracted by the news of the pending hurricane, Sandy, and its growth into a super storm. I’ve experienced killer hurricanes and blizzards and know the havoc and devastation such a storm can cause. My distraction was compounded by the fact that I have family and friends who were about to affected by this storm. Fortunately, everyone is safe. But in watching the news coverage of the devastation left behind, it struck me that while our problems in our professional lives can seem so important and perhaps insurmountable, we know where we’re going to sleep tonight, we know we can purchase food and gas, and our lives have not been turned upside down. Our business problems don’t seem quite so bad when compared to what is happening to millions of people living across the mid-Atlantic and eastern seaboard.
So I ask you all who happen to come across this blog or who read it regularly, please take a moment to pray for those who have lost everything – family, friends, homes, possessions, and for more than 100 of our fellow citizens, their lives. Please consider making a donation to any of those charities helping our fellow citizens try to find a sense of normalcy in the midst of unspeakable devastation and loss. It’s times like these when we truly show how good, caring and compassionate we are. Our fellow citizens need us.
What do you mean I can’t fire you?
Have you ever had to work with someone who was a charter member of the Office Jerk Hall of Fame? Did you go home at the end of the day, gnashing your teeth, pulling your hair out or thinking dark thoughts? I think it’s an unfortunate fact of professional life that we all, at some point in our career, will have to deal with a complete and total jerk. As much as you’d like to tell that jerk off you really can’t, especially if you’re the boss. And if that jerk happens to be Aunt Nellie’s favorite nephew, is it worth committing professional suicide to call him every name in the book just before you fire him?
Jerks come in a variety of forms and no listing here will ever be complete. So let’s look at one type. How many of us have gone to a staff or management meeting hoping to get something constructive done only to have the office jerk take control of the meeting? The agenda goes out the window and beating a dead horse becomes the only accomplishment of the meeting. You can see that your other staff or managers are frustrated, bored and looking for any excuse to leave. Today’s meeting is going the same route as the last two. What to do?
It’s time to become creative. Robert Detman, writing for Yahoo! HotJobs suggests that if it’s possible, have a meeting where everyone is standing. This change will likely throw the jerk off his/her game and stop the unproductive dominance. Good idea for a small informal group meeting but what if it’s a large gathering for an all day training? Any thoughts? What’s worked for you?
It’s Still One of Those Days
You still have to resolve the problem with the two employees who can’t seem to be mature professionals. You know their behavior is causing additional problems with productivity, morale, and your ever present case of heartburn. You also know that ignoring this and thinking it will go away is not an option. That’s like trying to ignore a toothache thinking that the missing filling will somehow heal itself. Not going to happen.
This might be a good time to consult with a professional problem solver. Why? It’s simple really. You’ve tried everything you can think of and the personnel issue has continued. It’s not getting any better and it just may be getting worse. What can the problem solver do that you can’t? The most obvious thing is that the problem solver will be able to see things from a fresh perspective. That fresh approach can validate the identification of the actual problems. Since the problem solver has no agenda other than to facilitate the resolution of the problems, the communications will likely be more honest and constructive. After all, the problem solver doesn’t have the authority to fire anyone or cause any other kinds of grief. The goal is to focus on the issue, behavior or situation and get a resolution in place that is effective and long lasting. With that sort of agenda, having it remain one of those stays becomes less and less likely. Wouldn’t you agree?
One of those days
Did you ever wake up and know the moment your feet hit the floor it was going to be one of those days? Your suspicions are confirmed the moment your assistant comes into your office with the comment, “You’re not going to believe this.” She’s right. You don’t. How is it that supposedly adult professionals can behave like a bunch of five year olds? What didn’t they get the first time you talked with them?
Does this describe some of the moments you’ve had recently? As we’ve discussed, when the parties involved don’t buy into the solution the problem may persist and worsen. So now what do you do? Look at the options you have. Have you correctly identified all of them? The range of options could help frame the approach you may want to take. You can choose to ignore the issue and hope it goes away or – –
Today, we’re going to look at one extreme option. Obviously, the quickest and harshest solution is to fire one, both or all of the players. Before giving this option serious consideration you need to look at all the consequences, intended and unintended. Are you acting out of frustration or in the best interests of your organization? Can the organization afford to lose one or more of the individuals? Do you have the personnel in place to immediately take over the duties and responsibilities? Or will you have to go through the hiring process? How will that affect productivity? How will firing these individuals affect the morale of the specific work unit and the overall organization? What message do you want to send? What message will be received? As you contemplate this extreme solution you can’t help thinking that the day can’t get any worse. Want to bet?