Updated: March 29, 2024
Ask ACE
Ask ACE: How do I fix unproductive behaviors?
By Angela Hansen of Range Culture Co.
Q: My employees are engaging in unproductive behaviors. It’s not just one person. How do I figure out what the broader issue is and what needs to be fixed?
ACE advises: It is likely that every one of your staff members wants to do a good job and enjoy their work. Yet they sometimes exhibit unhelpful, unprofessional and even unhealthy behavior. In these circumstances we often see three issues at play.
1. Roles are unclear. Job descriptions have a purpose beyond making lawyers happy. When job roles and responsibilities are clear, we know our lanes. When they are not clear, we will naturally test the environment to see what is acceptable and what is not.
2. Systems or policies are not in place. A written set of policies clarifies operational systems and procedures. When systems are unclear, employees test the environment; this testing can look like unhealthy or unprofessional behavior.
3. Lack of Accountability. Holding people accountable keeps them in their lanes, provides them with objective measures of performance, and informs them on how their work advances your business’s goals. They don’t need to test the system because they know what it is, and how they fit in.
With clear roles, systems, and policies, leaders have the tools needed to manage accountability. As a leader the first thing you need to do is to meet with each employee to ask some open-ended questions. Be a detective. Go into each conversation intending to learn, not to respond. These listening sessions provide insight into specific issues with clear roles, systems and policies, or lack of accountability.
You can call in a consultant to help you see some of these things objectively; however, doing this yourself builds relationships and trust with your group — and helps you retain a capable team.
Angela Hansen, an ACE member, is the co-founder and chief business officer of Range Culture Co., which provides practical tools for employers to retain valuable employees. Range Culture Co. provides workshops offering essential skills like communication and collaboration, conflict management, employee coaching, relationship building, change management, and hybrid workforce management. Angela can be reached at angela@rangecultureco.com.
Most Recent
Most Recent
0 Comments