How to Deal with Difficult Employees?

Oddly enough, some employees are ready with reasons to belittle new ideas of their team members. The naysaying trait is often accompanied by the lack of enthusiasm to take up responsibilities.

Such disruptive employees make workplace an unpleasant place to be, reducing employee morale and productivity.

And the unfortunate incidence kicks in, as most managers end up spending a significant time and emotional energy on managing the tough-minded pessimist. Many a time, they reach on the verge of letting the deadweight and rumour-spreaders go, but somehow fail to pull the trigger. Also, there are incidences where they fail to use employee management appropriately for documenting every actions and performance of their employees.

If you come across the professional landscape of successful managers in the recent times, you will realize that every one has to deal with non-performers and the know-it-all.

Here are seven things that managers need to do along with using people management software when confronted with difficult employees. These tricks can keep them from falling into the vertex of imperfection and turn even the most difficult employees into performers.

1. Don’t be oblivious to problems

Most often, managers simply ignore troublesome employees, considering that the problems will just go away with time. Ignoring negative actions of employees is a wrong idea, as problems will not turn themselves around automatically. You have to intervene as soon as possible and curb the negative behaviour the moment it becomes evident. Negative behaviour patterns need to be addressed on time, as the problem will only escalate further.

2. Mediate as soon as possible

Often, troublesome employees don’t have much idea that their actions invoke negative emotion. Team members of a problematic employee also try hard to put up with the annoying behaviour. Even when the problem worsens, colleagues are reluctant to speak up thinking that it’s just the job frustration of a particular employee.
Ultimately, it’s the manager’s responsibility to take appropriate corrective measures based on the root cause of the negative behaviour of certain employees and address them with proper feedback.

3. Know about the problem in detail

Apart from personally observing the interaction of difficult employees with colleagues, customers and stakeholders, managers need to get in-depth knowledge of the issue. People management software like Xecute HR can be useful in tracking the behaviour of difficult employees over a period.
To begin, they can ask the employee about the ongoing problem and the cause of his/ her unacceptable behaviour. If the person is not aware of the problems created by his negative approach, managers need to describe those in detail.

4. Give clear behavioural feedback

Most managers complain about the problematic behaviour of employees, but they never let them know about it personally. Giving negative feedback is one of the toughest tasks for managers, but they need to know how to do it reasonably well. Begin by giving your employees a chance to present their side of things. Once employees get over their mode of defensiveness, you need to suggest them immediate ways to improve. Employee management software can be used for documenting feedback at a single platform.

5. Help the problematic employee get back on track

Once employees are aware of their negative actions and have realized the reasons behind them, the next step should be of mentoring them towards more appropriate behaviour. Help them get over their negative emotion towards work by giving them appropriate reasoning. They need some time to practice and acquiring more suitable behaviour at the work place. Also, you need to keep them updated about the success or failure of their efforts in implementing more positive actions.

6. Document every negative action of employees

Whenever you notice any negative action of employees, note it down with the help of the best employee management software. Many managers face difficulty in dealing with difficult employees just because they have no record of their bad behaviour. Documenting the actions of employees reflects your prudent approach towards solving existing problems. It also shows your redeeming qualities and the promptness towards handling problematic staffers.

7. Set consequences if things don’t change

If an employee fails to showcase any positive behaviour with time, the next appropriate step is to direct their actions towards consequences. You need to give a specific period for problematic employees to address the questionable behaviour, else termination process will be initiated.

Remember, termination is the last stage. You should try every step towards promoting a culture of learning and development. And, ensure that there are negligible cases of termination due to behavioural issues.
With the help of employee management software like Xite by Xecute HR, you can focus on overall learning and development of your problematic employees. Individual development programs can also be created for such employees, directing them towards positive behaviour. Through customised learning modes of this employee management software, staffers with  negative behaviour can quickly get over hurdles and be more involved in the company’s conducive work culture.