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A Manager’s People Skills Dilemma – What Would You Do?

Posted in Hot Topics and New Bits, Leadership, People-Skills, Soft Skills

Corporate practice traditionally teaches managers to praise in public and correct in private. When it is about an individual’s work performance, it makes sense.

When it is about handling patronizing, demeaning, or abusive people skills behavior of one co-worker toward others, managers and supervisors face a dilemma.


People-Skills Dilemma

Manager's People Skills Dilemma - Whose Dignity? Image by:Istock


Do you offer the dignity of private correction to a worker who has demeaned other co-workers in public as in a meeting?

OR

Do you handle it at that moment in front of those affected to afford respect to the co-workers and preserve morale needed for the work?

OR

Do you expect the co-workers to speak up and handle the situation if they are offended?



Dilemma: Whose dignity and whose responsibility?




Managers, before you make a decision, consider:

  1. What will be the impact on the current interaction and work?
  2. What will be the impact on morale and future teamwork? Many overlook this question and focus purely on the current work.
  3. Are the co-workers truly empowered and skilled at responding to this honestly and appropriately?
  4. If the co-workers say nothing, it doesn’t necessarily mean that they are not offended. How productive will they be in current or future settings if they silently fume over the insult?


I have heard many say that it is still appropriate to offer the correction in private because it minimizes the perpetrator’s embarrassment and makes it easier to change behavior.

An absolute rule like this in today’s diverse workplace seems short sided and ill-fated. Knowing your team, training them on honest respectful communication, and being ready to correct or facilitate will prepare you to handle this well.

From my experience to your success,
Kate Nasser, The People-Skills Coach

What do you think? What other factors would you consider in this dilemma?

©2011 Kate Nasser, CAS, Inc. Somerville, NJ. If you want to re-post or republish this post, please email info@katenasser.com. Thank you for respecting intellectual capital.

Kate Nasser, The People-Skills Coach, has helped thousands of leaders, managers, and supervisors turn interaction obstacles into business success. See this site for teamwork session outlines, customer feedback, and footage to view.

Older Job Seekers – Leverage You!

Posted in Careers & Jobs, Thriving in Change

If you are a Baby Boomer or Gen X and you find yourself downsized/out of work, how will you compete with the younger workers for jobs?  Leverage “you”.   Above all make sure you are using LinkedIn and Twitter. 

Here is the link for Twitter job posts: www.twitterjobsearch.com/map.  Also another link I found on Twitter on how to avoid the biggest job search mistakes: http://bit.ly/qiNWR.  

#1 Prepare simple statements that explain why you over the younger workers.

Sample.  “I am more valuable now than when I got out of school.  I apply my years of experience to the challenges of this decade.  I have been through many changes in my life so to me – change is normal.  I see experience as a guide not a bible.  I stay current with technology and I work easily with people of different ages, cultures, and education.  I am smart, trainable, and learn fast.   

To write your statement, read the related blog post here on this site:   http://katenasser.com/apply-yourself-and-then-apply-for-that-job/

#2 Bridge the gap for the interviewer.  Many interviewers are incented by their companies to hire young ones even though they do not admit it.  Give them significant evidence that you are the best hire to help them overcome their fears of bucking “corporate think”.   Not all interviewers are change agents at heart.   You must reduce their fear if you want a shot at the job.  And of course, don’t tell them they are afraid! 

#3 Back up your claims of being “current”.   Make sure you are on some online site such as LinkedIn or Twitter.  Learn how to text message.  Read up on current jargon in your field and in online networking.  Prepare examples of how you are using current technology to learn.  Are you doing webinars?  Are you going to school online?  All of this makes you “current”.

You are welcome to share this information with other blogs and social media if you credit this blog post.   I also welcome your comments and questions below.

Many thanks for visiting and click the RSS feed to receive updates on blog posts.

Kate Nasser, The People-Skills Coach

http://katenasser.com