How to Deal With Difficult Employees

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Why Difficult Employees Exist

Most people have encountered difficult employees at different levels on the company hierarchy. There is seldom a pattern or obvious job function related to "challenging" employees. It might be a supervisor, manager, peer, subordinate, or intern that generates the difficulty.

The reasons behind the behavior of difficult employees are as diverse as the employees themselves. If you have any doubts, ask yourself a few questions.

• Are all the employees of your company just like you?
• Does all staff come from the same economic background?
• Are all team members from the same ethnic group?
• Are all the employees married? Single? Living with a partner?
• Do all staff members have a college education?

As you can see, there are many differences, environmental and otherwise, that can sometimes create difficult employees. The mix of ages, prior employment conditions, and outside-of-work issues can further complicate matters.

It is also important to understand that most difficult employees continue to display this behavior because they have been rewarded for it in the past. It is simply a pattern that has worked for them over time. Like the crying baby or barking dog who is “rewarded” to stop their perceived bad behavior, many difficult employees use these methods subconsciously to achieve their goals.

Difficult employees will always exist, so it's worth learning how to deal with them to maximize performance and minimize disruptions. Here are some tips to help you manage this type of employee better to achieve higher performance.

How to Manage Difficult Employees

Difficult employees can also be valuable employees if you can manage them effectively. Using these few basic suggestions might help deliver the result you want.

• Get the facts. Avoid acting on rumor, uninformed perception, gossip, or any other non-corroborated information. Make sure you have personally witnessed or received other definite proof of alleged bad behavior. The ramifications of taking overt action toward a difficult employee who may not be the problem you perceive could do much more harm than good.
• Make a thoughtful evaluation of the facts. Once you are sure one of your employees fits into the “difficult” category, estimate the real status of the situation. Ask yourself, “How much operational damage is this staff member causing?” “What is the true effect on the team of the actions of this employee?” “How much is team or department productivity being hurt by the recalcitrant employee?” The answers will often influence the type of action you should take to improve the situation.
• Create an action plan that addresses the situation. Simply knowing you have a difficult employee will not solve the productivity or chemistry problems he or she generates. As a manager, you need to create an action plan that will result in improved behavior and, as a result, the improved performance of your team.
• Take timely action. Depending on the seriousness of the employee’s behavior, you may be required to act very quickly – sometimes immediately – to diffuse potentially problematic situations. Even assuming your difficult employee is not the physically dangerous type, addressing a problem right away is very important. Try not to react impulsively, as inappropriate responses could, once again, worsen an already non-productive situation.
• Be positive, supportive, and persistent. Confronting the problem does not mean using argument, intimidation, or threats. Keep your eyes on the prize. Your goal is to manage your difficult employee to improve performance, productivity, and team chemistry. The best way to reach your objective is to address the behavior patterns, not personally attack the employee. Be as positive as possible. Tell your employee what you need from him/her.

Difficult employees, properly managed, often become productive team players. If you follow this action plan (or a similar one), you will give both yourself and the employee the best chance to succeed. There are no guarantees of success, however. Some difficult employees are so entrenched in their habits or have such extreme circumstances in their lives that even thoughtful management action won’t be effective. The only action plan that may guarantee failure is taking no action at all.

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