The Point: One mosquito, one damn mosquito can ruin the peace of the entire household. The same is true of a bad employee in your business. No matter how large your organization may be, a single lazy, unmotivated, and gossiping employee can negatively impact the performance of the entire workforce. Are you facing problems dealing with such people in your organization? Read on to learn some effective tips to handle this leadership challenge… Enjoy!
Identifying a Bad Employee
When a policy is violated, or when there is persistent underperformance, you may clearly have a bad employee in your midst. However, what about all those workers who are just passing along and are not working to unlock their true potential? They only work enough to get by, and secure their position in the organization due to their experience.
When you are building a business from the ground up, or when you are trying to keep your company afloat during economic crises, such employees, no matter how good-natured they are, can actually hinder the growth of the company. As a leader, you have to call them out and have an honest discussion with such employees as part of your leadership development.
Why You Should Call Out Bad Employees – Top 3 Reasons
Reason #3: Send a Message
When you don’t discipline trouble-makers, you are setting a negative precedent that bad performance goes tolerated in the organization. You have to send the message that if an employee refuses to follow your rules and the company vision, leadership (or management) will not spare the rod. This is especially true in times of economic crises, where high levels of unemployment mean that each employee can be replaced with someone equally, if not more talented. This statement is not made to be a threat, because a person working under fear may underperform. Think of it more as a promise that they will be held accountable for not living up to their potential.
Reason #2: Solve Problems
Problem resolution is a major component of leadership. You can’t simply overlook an issue and expect the company to propel towards success. If this was a product issue, you’d probably develop a new one based on market feedback. Why wouldn’t you do the same with a disruptive employee?
Reason #1: You Lead as a Leader, Right?
Ultimately, everything reflects on you as a leader. If you let a problem get out of hand (which does happen when you ignore calling out bad employees), you will destroy your resume as a business manager and leader.
Take Action!
Instead of waiting until the last moment and letting things get out of hand, you should deal with employee performance proactively. Set the expectations of each team member in writing and ask each employee to create a plan of action showing you how they plan to succeed. After some deliberation, put them into action, and review them on a cadenced basis (daily/weekly or bi-weekly).
Congratulate employees that achieve their goals to boost their morale, while hold those employees accountable that are not fulfilling what is required of them. This will help to solve problems as they arise.
Like everyday life, ignoring a small problem only makes it bigger as time goes on. The same holds true when managing poor performers in your organization!
Summary
To sum up, you shouldn’t shy away from confronting bad employees. Disciplining bad employees is not an afterthought for leaders, something that they have to do as a last resort, but it is actually crucial to leadership development.
For more information on Tip of the Spear Leadership Development programs, including those leveraging The Leadership Challenge use the Contact Us form on our website.
