Chapter 9 – The Four People Issues, page 131.
“To see what is right and not do it is want of courage.” – Confucius
- Even if you apply everything that we’ve shared with you in the previous chapters, and despite your best efforts, you’ll occasionally have a direct report that isn’t behaving or performing at our above The Bar.
- When we don’t address people issues, there are consequences for us, our department, and our organization.
- Your people issues are already hurting you, and there’s no way to hide them.
- You have to trust your gut and do what’s right for the good of all.
The Four People Issues
- Right Person, Right Seat
- It will become an issue if you are not giving these individuals your time and attention.
- These people are rowing harder to compensate for others who aren’t rowing.
- When you spend time what precious time you have for your people focused solely on resolving “wrong seat” and “wrong people” issues, the Great People may feel that you’re taking them for granted.
- Why should they continue to work for you if you don’t spend time helping them get better?
- The Right Person in the Right Seat is actively engaged at work, they energize you, challenge your thinking, and make you a better boss.
- When asking, “What’s working and not working?” ask:
- What you can do to make them more effective?
- What they would do to make the company or department even better?
- If you were running the department [or company], what would you do differently?
- What process or procedure should change or could be simplified?
- Where are the breakdowns happening, why are they happening, and what would you do to correct them?
- Right Person, Wrong Seat
- Although they’re a role model for your Core Values and fit your organization’s culture, they’re not producing.
- And despite your quarterly conversations, they’re not responding.
- This is a difficult issue and one you’re avoiding because you genuinely like this person.
- This person has been with you through thick and thin, but they’re in over their head and have become a bottleneck. They can’t keep up with the volume and are stressed out most of the time.
- Everyone loves this person, but they aren’t completing their tasks on time and are struggling in their role. Others are picking up the slack and letting their own responsibilities slide.
- This situation is especially tough when you are a small organization. These people have been with you since the beginning, and you don’t have another “seat” where this Right Person can fit.
- However, you cannot keep someone on the payroll just because you like them.
- Ideally, if your organization is large enough, you might have another seat for them. And this should be your first choice.
- However, if there are no other seats available, how you handle this situation speaks volumes about how much you care about your people:
- First, ensure that you’ve created awareness through your Quarterly Conversations and completed the Three Strikes.
- Schedule a meeting at a time and place where you won’t be interrupted.
- Follow your company’s termination policy, and if it offers a severance package, have that and your documentation completed before the meeting.
- State the issue clearly and get to the point quickly.
- Keep the rest of the conversation focused on answering questions they might have about their severance and how you’ll help them find the right opportunity elsewhere.
- Wrong Person, Right Seat
- These people are exceptional at production and output but are getting results in ways that are damaging your company’s reputation, aggravating fellow team members, and undermining everything you’re trying to accomplish for the long term.
- These are usually me-first people who put their interests before the Core Values of the organization.
- Highly productive in the short term, but killing your company in the long term.
- You can’t let them hold you hostage.
- When you ignore this issue, you’re telling your organization that the Core Values don’t matter.
- How you handle these situations are moments of truth for your Core Values.
- Often times these people are blind to their behaviors and/or are rationalizing them against getting results.
- If this person’s behavior does not change despite having Quarterly Conversations and applying two of the three strikes, they must go.
- You must be prepared for how you handle this situation:
- Assuming Quarterly Conversations occurred and two of the three strikes have been given…
- Ensure that you and your boss are on the same page about terminating this person’s employment.
- If you have an HR professional, make sure they concur and that all documentation is completed.
- Schedule the meeting and follow your company’s termination policy.
- Meet the person, state the issue clearly, and get to the point quickly.
- This type of termination can be difficult, but the impact on your company’s culture can be huge.
- Wrong Person, Wrong Seat
- This issue is the most obvious and hopefully is discovered within the first ninety days of hiring (or inheriting) someone.
- If you are doing a good job of keeping the circle connected with a weekly Meeting Pulse, the deficiency will be glaring within weeks.
- It is better to have an empty seat than a Wrong Person, Wrong Seat.
- When you realize before, during, and after Quarterly Conversations and weekly meetings that the person is clearly below The Bar for Core Values and GWC and hasn’t improved after Two Strikes, you must let the person go. Follow the same procedure outlined in People Issue Number 3.
- Sometimes, however, the issue is so blatant that you should skip Strikes One and Two and move directly to Strike Three and terminate the employee.
- In all of the employee situations, you should realize that you must take the lead. Though termination may make you uncomfortable, it’s also part of being a boss.
- You cannot abdicate your role as boss to HR.
