Hiring people is tough. Managing people is tougher. Deciding what to do with the “employee on the fence” is the toughest job of all.
For those of you who have managed people, you've undoubtedly come across this scenario time and time again. Employees on the fence can mean many things: low performance, not living the values, causing cultural issues, not open to change, and the list goes on. It's not as simple as just putting employees into different buckets, like A, B, and C because you can have an "A player" that you feel on the fence about and a "C Player" you're not on the fence about either. Employees on the fence are people that you wouldn't hire again, but can’t bring yourself to fire for whatever reason.
In my time of working with clients, they struggle the most with what to do with these employees. In fact, they waste a TON of time stuck in gray zone. I've been there myself. One day you feel as though the person is a decent employee and the next day – BAM – they do something that makes you scratch your head and think “how did I make the decision to hire him/her?”
Because I’ve been through it more times than I can count with eQ and with clients, I've stuck with the philosophy that you have two choices in dealing with the employees you are on the fence about. There are really only two choices and believing that there are any more, will keep you in the gray zone for eternity.
#1: Acceptance
You accept the person as they are, how they show up, and all of the “baggage” they bring with them. You accept the person and are committed to making the relationship better. You take responsibility for where the relationship has been and know that in order to make it work, you must change yourself. You must find a way to connect with the person, whether it’s through compassion, empathy, admiration or patience. Greatness is inside all of us, and no different with this fence sitting employee – deep down inside – there’s greatness. He/she is a human with infinite powers, powers you don’t even understand and as his/her leader, it’s YOUR responsibility to tap into those powers. When you get to a place of acceptance, you will look at him/her in a different light and then you will see the relationship begin to blossom.
#2: Acceptance is not possible
If you cannot accept them, you must terminate the relationship immediately. There’s an old Buddhism teachings that talk about impermanence, which can be summarized by everything is in a state of flux or constantly changing and not permanent. Regardless of your religion, not all relationships work. It’s true in business relationships, friendships, family relations, and marriage. If you cannot accept the person for who they are as an employee, you must cut ties and allow them to work for someone that can see their inner power.
#3: There is no choice number three
Many leaders I know (and I've been guilty too) believe there is a third choice which is to not accept the person as they are and not to let the person go. Many times this is done subconsciously and ultimately the relationship will fizzle, clients will be at risk, morale will be jeopardized, and you will find yourself unnecessarily suffering.
Take a stand, grow some confidence in yourself, and make a decision. Will it be #1 or #2? Remember a third option does not exist.
Misti Aaronson is the Executive Vice President and Partner at entreQuest. She utilizes her talents and expertise from working with countless organizations to help businesses grow through expert talent acquisition, growth methodology and development of their teams.
