ye INSIDE DOUGLAS COLLEGE / FEBRUARY 27, 1990

 

 

 

Bosses have problems too

ple who work as supervisors
— who play the role of “boss”
in any working situation — are
often unsure of themselves when it
comes to dealing with poor
employee performance.

Many supervisors are insecure
about talking to an employee about
poor work habits, according to
management trainer John Watt.
“Because they may not have the
knowledge they need, many bosses
are nervous and worried about
saying something negative to an
employee with a performance
problem.”

Watt is leading a two-day
workshop March 8 and 9 at Douglas
College for supervisors called
Conducting Effective Performance
Interviews."

_ “This course is not designed for
the expert,” says Watts. “It will be of
general interest. Anyone who has to
appraise the performance of other
people will benefit from it.”

The course is for people who
have a supervisory problem and do
not know what to do about it.
“When people walk out of this
course we will have given them the
tools they need to do something
about their problem,” he says. “The
participants will be able to feel more
comfortable in any performance in-
terview. They will be in control and
know what is going on.”

Watt offers several case studies
to show participants how to im-

prove the way they conduct perfor- ’

mance interviews. For example,
Harry Smith is a good worker and
gets along well with his fellow
employees. But Harry is always late
for work. He has been warned a
number of times and his response is
always the same. “Aw, c’mon, boss, I
work hard all day for you guys.
_ What’sa few lousy minutes?”
What can the supervisor say to
get his tardy worker to be on time?

“The boss should make sure the
ground rules are set right at the

- beginning,” Watt says. “He or she

must establish a contract with =
Harry, let him know that this is what

_ is expected, and that there will be

consequences if the tardiness con-
tinues.” .
But what if Harry thinks he can

. get by on his competence and’his

charm and continues to be late for
work each day?

 

 

 

 

 

“Establishing and focusing on
the contract between the company
and the employee works for 99 per
cent of people,” Watt says. “But with
the one percent who just will not
learn, the supervisor must be
prepared to fire that person if they
refuse to honour the contract.”

Watt cites other examples of »
employees with performance
problems. Joe Jones is cheerful,
honest, loyal and a hardworking
employee. But Joe is incompetent.
He was not always this, way. With
the company for twenty years as a
warehouseman, he has always been
an asset.

But the company has com-
puterized its warehousing and Joe is
unable to cope. He is no longer
cheerful and his mistakes are begin-
ning to cost the company money.
What does his boss do?

“It is important to treat Joe with
the courtesy he deserves,” Watt says.
“If a boss cannot treat his people
with respect and decency, he will
not succeed as a supervisor.”

“Joe deserves a ‘Win-Win’ solu-

tion to his problem,” says Watt. “He

must come away knowing that his
inadequacy is understood and
respected, and that both he and his
boss have worked together to solve
the problem. He may be moved to
another department. The boss
should always know how far the
company is prepared to go in deal-
ing with loyal and hardworking
Joe.”

At the other end of the spectrum
is Super Sally, an over-achiever
whose performance at work is daz-
zling and quite incredible. Her boss
is a little afraid of her. She is so good
the boss sometimes feels quite inade-
quate when dealing with her.

“The trick with Super Sally is to
make sure she does not run out of
challenges and that the way she is
treated does not adversely affect the
other workers,” Watt says. “But the
boss should remember that the
people who get promoted are those
who develop good people to work
for them. Sally can be a great asset to
her boss.”

Watt encourages supervisors to
bring their problems to the
workshop for discussion. The course
runs Thursday, March 8 and Friday,
March 9, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. each
day. The cost is $155. Early registra-
tion is recommended. For more in-
formation call 527-5470. @

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