The truth is that few business owners have had human resource management experience.
Does the young lady in the photo give the impression she is giving her superior a bit of a challenge? You are going to run into situations where one or more employees exhibit less than desirable behavior — including virtual temper tantrums. There are a whole lot of folks who could use some anger management counseling, and this number would include both company owners and their staff members. Losing one’s temper and throwing a tantrum in front of our employees is a totally unacceptable behavior; but that is the subject of another newsletter. This article will deal with disruptive employees and the potential damage they can do to you and your company.
As fate would have it, I spoke to two owners yesterday on this very topic. In one case, it concerned a five-year tenured employee and an excellent cleaner. In the other, it was a relatively new worker but also a very good cleaner. Both had been dismissed; one was fired and the other quit in a huff.
In both cases, warning flags had been flying for some time. Both should have been dismissed long before things came to a head. Now both women are creating problems by continuing to contact former coworkers in an effort to create a rebellion.
I suppose neither owner would have dragged their feet and put up with the bad behavior of these 2 employees if they had not been top-notch cleaners. But as happens so often, because they did good work, they had been allowed to get away with unacceptable behavior which just got worse and worse over time. Now one of the owners is so upset over the disruption her employee has caused, up to and including the loss of 4 other workers, she is herself over-reacting and talking about “getting even” by taking this employee to court – further exacerbating the situation.
Chances are if these two employees had been better vetted before hiring, these instances may have been avoided in the first place. Behavior indicators might have raised red flags to prevent their hiring in the first place. Attitude and behavior are more important than having skills which can be learned. Unless you want to play Dr. Phil, it’s much more of a challenge to redirect attitudes and behaviors.
The worst part of both of these stories is the disruption these behaviors have brought to the rest of the apples in the barrel. In fact, in one case the owner was so wrapped up in revenge she was on the verge of contributing to the carnage.
The truth is that few business owners have had human resource management experience. This is why 6 hours of our House Cleaning Biz 101 program are devoted to this important topic. This is a management skill which can and must be learned in order to build a $1 million+ residential cleaning business.
With 22 years in the cleaning industry and 45 years of experience building his own businesses, Gary Goranson was one of the first business consultants to serve the residential cleaning industry with real experience and solid credentials. Visit him at HouseCleaningBiz101.com.
