Kathy, an admin manager with a large manufacturing
organisation, was at her wit's end. In the main she loved
her job, but just recently she'd 'inherited' two staff from
another department and they were making her life
unnecessarily difficult.
The two women in question - both in their early 50's - had
been told six months previously that their jobs were under
threat of redundancy. However, at the eleventh hour, the
HR department - out of loyalty to the two women who'd
worked with the company for more than 15 years - had found
new positions for them.
At first the duo had been relieved to know that they would
still be getting their monthly pay packet - but the stress
of the previous six months' uncertainty was beginning to
take its toll. Unsurprisingly, both women had been unnerved
by their experience and they'd separately - and secretly -
vowed to themselves that they'd never "give their all" to
their employer again.
While their stance may have been understandable, for Kathy,
it was untenable. New to her own job, she was keen to prove
herself - but with these two "unengaged" women, Kathy knew
that she had a major problem on her hands. Determined not
to let the situation beat her, Kathy had given me a call to
ask for help.
First, I knew that Kathy needed to understand how her two
staff felt, so I asked her to imagine being in their shoes.
After I'd taken her - in her imagination - through the
experience that the two women had been through, I asked her
how she thought she'd feel in their situation.
"I guess I'd feel as though the company didn't really value
me. I'd be shocked to think that I could so easily be
removed from a job I'd enjoyed for a number of years and
I'd be really worried about how I was both going to make
ends meet and get another job."
Already, Kathy's voice was beginning to soften as she began
to see the situation through their eyes. "And I guess," I
added, "it would be a bit like going through the grieving
process. At first, there'd be disbelief, followed by
anger, then sadness. The next stage in the process would
be a kind of numbness - followed by a letting go and
choosing to get on with life."
Kathy had nodded at this, saying, "Yes, I can see that if
I'd been in their situation, I'd have felt both hurt and
angry. And while I might have been relieved in the short
term to know that I'd still got a job which would take care
of my financial worries, I probably would have soon got
pretty resentful at having to leave what had been a
comfortable situation!"
She'd raised an eyebrow and then smiled in understanding
when I'd gone on to explain that the two women had probably
been projecting their resentment onto her and the new team.
"In reality, their lack of engagement has little to do with
you and a lot to do with them. But as their manager - and
now that you understand why they're behaving as they are -
it's still up to you to rekindle their enthusiasm."
Noting Kathy's perplexed look, I continued, "And the best
way to do this is to spend time with each of them
separately so that you can get to know them. Find out what
interests them and get them to tell you about their
personal goals. And if they don't have any goals, help
them to create some. Behave as though you were their coach
- and remind them of the bigger picture. Challenge,
motivate and inspire them - and above all, make THEM
important."
Kathy knew then that if trust were to be rebuilt, then it
was up to her to take the first step.
When Kathy and I next touched base, she reported that
things had changed dramatically. "It took a little while,"
she conceded, "but I stuck with it. It was much easier
knowing why they were behaving the way they were. Because I
was able to stop taking their negativity so personally, it
was so much easier to see behind their resentment. As you
suggested, I spent time with each of them and once they'd
put together some personal goals, things really started to
improve. Frankly, I was amazed. I suppose, in order to be
motivated, everyone needs to be aware of their 'personal
reason why'!"
----------------------------------------------------
Olivia Stefanino is a leadership consultant, speaker and
author of the internationally acclaimed management book,
"Be Your Own Guru". Interviewed on more than 25 radio
stations and featured in "The Guardian", "Natural Health"
& "Red", Olivia is a guest columnist for a number of
national and international publications. Download your
fr*ee e-booklet, "128 ways to harness your personal power!"
by visiting http://www.beyourownguru.com
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