Strategies for Dealing with Difficult Employees

Dealing with Problems

Following is a list of bullet point tips that you might use in dealing with difficult individuals:

• Remember that people of dissimilar ability can find each other difficult.
  
• Watch for signals that more job variety might be needed.
  
• Get to know each member of your team so that you can become aware of how to best help them. Motivate a difficult person by understanding what they need.
  
• Build a supportive culture that recognizes staff.
  
• Identify each team member’s skills in order to allocate them suitable roles.
  
• Pick a team with varied skills to ensure harmony among the group.
  
• Work to change people who always respond negatively.
  
• Know your team members strengths and weaknesses.
  
• Identify approaches that
  
• motivate the team and use them more often.
  
• Make people feel like they are part of a winning team.
  
• Celebrate good news and team achievements. Show people that you value their contributions.
  
• Know that how you communicate with your employees is as vital as what you communicate. Always be positive and constructive when you are communicating.
  
• Learn to identify signs when people are about to become more difficult. Recognize that difficult behavior can be a habit if not tackled early. Remember that avoiding the problem is only a short-term solution!
  
• Define roles to reduce competing or defending within the team.
  
• Be aware of your own emotional responses. Give yourself time to look objectively at a situation. Always review a difficult person’s overall performance to avoid a hasty action.
  
• Respect the rights of others and compromise when appropriate.
  
• Listen to others if you want to be listened to yourself.
  
• Make sure that difficult people understand the full impact of their behavior.
  
• Aim to improve performance – it is more cost effective than dismissal.
  
• Set realistic time frames for staff to demonstrate improvement.

The ability to lead difficult individuals out of unproductive situations to improved performance and better working relationships is an essential management skill. Learning to deal effectively with difficult people equips you with proven techniques and strategies to enable you to anticipate problem people, stop trouble from escalating and help awkward staff become fully contributing members of your team.

If you would like a self assessment questionnaire that will assist you in measuring your skill level and help you identify areas that are in need of improvement, just send me a request via e-mail me at darlingtonconsulting@gmail.com.