Delivering Bad News Tactfully and Effectively

Case study-“You are a department manager in a mid-sized company that provides technology support services. You have ten employees who are required to maintain a high level of technical expertise and deliver excellent customer service. One of your employees, who have been with the company for two years, is performing at a substandard level and you have received numerous complaints from customers and coworkers. In addition, this employee has displayed confrontational behavior which has created a hostile environment. You must now meet with this employee and deliver an ultimatum regarding the need for immediate improvement or dismissal.”

It is never easy to deliver bad news, but it is very important to deliver it tactfully and effectively. As a manager, my responsibilities are to ensure that all employees are performing well, providing great customer service and working as valuable team players. Whenever an employee does not do those things I have to meet with them to discuss it.

The first thing I would do is to prepare for myself for the meeting with the employee. “Preparation is the most extensive and, in many ways, the most important stage of the confrontation process” (Cahn & Abigal, 2007). It is important to make sure that all of the issues, needs and documentations are prepared for the meeting.
The second thing I would do is to schedule a meeting with the employee to discuss their work performance. I would make sure that the meeting happens rather quickly to avoid any other issues. The third thing I would do is to meet with the employee. I would start the meeting out with asking the employee how they think their work performance has been for the past two years. I would use the S-TLC method and stop, think, listen and communicate. When dealing with a conflict, the S-TLC system suggests that you stop and take a moment to gather your thoughts, calm down, and focus on the issue at hand.

After I listen to the employee explain how well their work is going, how great they are with the customers and other employees. I will discuss their substandard work performance, the customer complaints and their confrontational behavior. I will make sure that the employee is fully aware of the companies’ policy on appropriate workplace behavior. I will also explain the type of disciplinary action that will be taken and what will result if things do not improve. I will schedule another meeting in one month to see if there were any improvements made by the employee. If there are no improvements made, then the employee will be terminated.