She’s intelligent, talented, and fired. This isn’t the first time and might not be the last unless she gets a handle on what’s not working and what is.
What’s working? Plenty. Claire (whose name is fictitious and behavior is real) is independent, self reliant, and self -starting. She thinks fast and talks faster. She’s analytic, organized and a wizard at remembering the details; all of which enable her to nail a problem at 500 paces. It’s what she does with the problem she’s nailed that’s her downfall:
“Who’s responsible? Who’s to blame? Somebody did it, own up!”
Suddenly she’s out of control, screaming, finger pointing, accusing every employee within earshot of conspiracy aimed at ruining her and the company. Once she’s satisfied the culprits have been blamed (if not found) she’s chasing another problem. By the time Claire gets home she’s exhausted. Here’s how she describes her day:
“I find problems and I want whatever’s broken to get fixed. It takes time and money to repeat the same errors, and we don’t have any to waste. What’s the matter with the people who work for this company? No matter how many times I point out the obvious, they either ignore the problem or what I’m telling them. I just don’t understand how they can care so little about their work or their workplace.”
You might wonder, what’s so bad? She’s doing her job, others aren’t, so why is that her problem and why is she getting fired? Ask her employees and they’ll tell you:
Claire’s a human wrecking ball. She thinks she’s great at finding problems? She creates more than she can ever hope to find. Just about everyone who’s left here, left because they’re no longer willing to take her insulting, in your face style. She’s one of those people who takes on too much then gets overwhelmed by the workload she asked for. She never wants help, never delegates anything, never asks for an opinion, and gets angry if you offer one. She’s a piece of work that no one wants to work for.
Claire’s in terminal trouble because she’s taken her strengths and turned them into liabilities. She assumes the worst and is determined to prove it. Her employees don’t respond to her attacks because they’re busy defending themselves. They have to because she doesn’t give them a chance to be part of the solution.
Claire’s an equal opportunity blamer. She treats her boss, peers, and subordinates the same way. She either greets them with a laundry list of what’s broken or bursts into their space with a snarling; “Did you know this was going on?” Whether she’s delivering a pronouncement or asking a question, it all sounds alike: “You idiot! You’ve done it again!”
Claire’s managing a business that’s battered by a wounded economy and a damaged national spirit. Employees need Claire to rally their support and loyalty. Claire’s boss needs her to be a problem solver, not a problem maker. As much as he doesn’t want to fire her, he needs someone who can mend, not tear the fabric of his organization.
Can she do it?
If she has to become someone else to achieve it, she can’t and won’t. Claire doesn’t want to maximize her weaknesses to minimize her strengths. She shouldn’t have to.
Claire needs to let employees be part of the solution. She may be great at finding what’s broken but she hasn’t demonstrated a talent for creating processes that don’t break. Her job is to access the ideas and suggestions of those who work with the system, rather than blame them when the system doesn’t work. They can either tell her how to fix it, or if she gives them the authority, they can fix it themselves.
Bottom line: Claire needs to level the playing field. There’s a trade-off between what she needs and doesn’t know and what other employees know and need. Blaming pushes them and their information away. Her goal may be to maximize company profits by minimizing waste but she’ll never get there if she’s the only one left in the game.
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Yes! You may use this article by Executive and Career Coach, Joyce Richman, in your blog, article in your blog, newsletter or website as long as you include the following bio box:
Joyce Richman (www.joycerichman.com) has been specializing in executive and career coaching since she started her own practice in 1982. She works in a variety of environments including: higher education, manufacturing, sales, marketing, media, technology, pharmaceuticals, medicine, banking and finance, service, IT, and non-profit sectors. A member of the adjunct faculty at the Center for Creative Leadership, Joyce is certified to administer a number of feedback and psychological instruments. Joyce is a weekly guest on WFMY-TV and the career columnist for The Greensboro News & Record. She is the author of Roads, Routes and Ruts: A Guidebook to Career Success and co-author of Getting Your Kid Out of the House and Into a Job. A popular speaker, Richman conducts seminars and workshops throughout the United States, Canada and Europe. Her coaching profile can be found at TheCoachingAssociation.com.
