People Management

When an employee experiences the death of a family member or close friend, it’s tempting for supervisors to take a hands-off approach to the em­­ployee’s grief. However, silently waiting for the em­­ployee’s emotional recovery isn’t the best strategy. Take the following four steps to sensitively manage grieving employees and their impact on co-workers.

Negative feedback requires a manager to motivate, counsel and criticize in a way that alerts employees to where the problems lie and what must be done to solve them. Fortunately, it’s a skill that can be learned.

Eric Ryan and Adam Lowry first noticed the need for their company when they shared a house with three friends. In looking for cleaning products that didn’t have harsh, toxic ingredients, Ryan and Lowry came up empty-handed. Thus the idea for Method home-cleaning products was kindled.

Most employees have skills in creativity, collaboration, problem-solving, critical thinking and adaptability. They simply need more. “Brain work is more important than ever,” says Pat Galagan of the American Society for Training and Development.

In your role as a leader, working with people is essential, and it takes time. And sometimes, you might be asked to help with something that’s a priority for others, but not for you. The question, says Peter Bregman, CEO of Bregman Partners, boils down to this: How can we spend time where we add the most value and let go of the rest?

You never appreciate a good performer until you’ve fired a bad performer. That’s because bad performers take so much time and attention to manage. From the moment you sense that an employee isn’t working out—and you set in motion disciplinary steps—you have to imagine a judge and jury watching your every move. That way, you can stand behind your actions without feeling embarrassed or guilty.

The problem: A stellar employee seeks a promotion to a job that demands a fair amount of speaking in front of groups large and small. The trouble is, she stutters. Your first thought: This will not work out. What do you tell her?

Sacred cows are roaming your hallways. They’re grazing on profits, productivity and patience. To round them up and put them out to pasture, you need to be a constant cow hunter. And you need to get your entire team excited about tumbling those herds.

In hiring, use questions or case studies to screen out amoral individuals. In leading, make your value system explicit.

The general might get the credit for his strategy or style. But if you want to win battle after battle—and, ultimately, the war—good sergeants are essential.