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The list of difficult conversations a manager can be faced with is a long one, and when you have had little HR or management training or have no support, who can blame you if your first instinct is to avoid them?
Underperformance, managing sickness absence levels, clashes of personalities between team members, staff tensions, having to refuse an annual leave or flexible working request due to team demands – and that’s just for starters. The list of difficult conversations a manager can be faced with is a long one, and when you have had little HR or management training or have no support, who can blame you if your first instinct is to avoid them?
But we all know what happens when things are ignored or left to fester. Yes – they escalate, and an issue that could have been nipped in the bud quickly becomes impossible to manage. For a business, the destructive impact if issues are just left to snowball cannot be overstated. Something that started out as minor could quickly end up as a grievance, a resignation or worse, a tribunal claim.
An unmanaged individual can quickly lead to an unhappy and disillusioned workforce, meaning it can become difficult to retain employees. And if the worst does happen and the business ends up with a claim against it, think of the potential long-lasting damage to its reputation both commercially but also when it comes to recruiting new talent - not to mention the time, cost and emotional energy spent in defending a claim.
Time and time again we see cases where a business has been reluctant to deal with a difficult employee, shying away from properly managing them because previous attempts have been met with hostility or maybe even a grievance. In all these cases, it was clear to see that the manager involved was not properly supported by the business. In some, it resulted in the manager becoming disillusioned and leaving. In others, the employee ended up bringing a tribunal case against the employer.
In all cases, some simple steps could have been taken to avoid such negative outcomes. If the employer had supported the manager from the outset and provided them with the necessary training, meaning the issues were dealt with from the start, negative outcomes could have been reduced or even avoided. Training managers to confidently deal with difficult conversations will ensure they are well equipped to take effective action when needed.
Making sure your policies and procedures are regularly updated and checked by an employment solicitor ensures both that employees know what to do and the business is protected. Having the support of an employment solicitor who knows your business can be invaluable if you are not sure how to deal with a specific issue. They can provide everything from a quick telephone call sanity check, ongoing helpline advice or even a structured plan of options to deal with difficult issues and minimise the risk to the business.
Don’t leave it to chance or wait until an issue arises. Investing in the right training and proper advice now could avoid irreparable damage to professional relationships and the business in the future.
Training is not a luxury. Penny wise, pound foolish.
Click here to download a copy of our training brochure to see how we can help.
Click here to access our useful download doc on dealing with difficult conversations in the workplace.
If you have any questions regarding the services we provide, please do not hesitate to get in touch using the form provided.
0113 2123240