What do you do when there’s an employee or a manager in your business whose behavior and performance are an issue that no one wants to talk about? Mike and Ray talk through how to look at the problem head-on and do whatever it takes to turn things around, especially if there’s a family member involved.

Subjects Covered

BIG PROBLEMS: This week’s episode was prompted by Ray’s diving into the book The Elephant In The Office: Super-Simple Strategies for Difficult Conversations at Work, by Diane Ross. More than anything, the book is about acknowledging the problems in your business – especially the case in family-run businesses – that aren’t even trying to hide in plain sight.

LET’S TALK: Sometimes there’s no other alternative but an intervention for dealing with a problematic employee or manager who is exhibiting continued bad behavior, possibly including alcohol or drug use. Be sure to do lots of research about how to construct and conduct an intervention to help someone you want to get their life back on track.

FINDING EMPATHY: Emotional intelligence is one of the under-acknowledged secret weapons of the modern business world, particularly the use of empathy to better relate to employees and family members who may be going through difficult times. Mike and Ray note that empathy is key for approaching someone who’s become a problem in the business, to keep them from becoming defensive and deflecting any talk about their performance.

OUTSIDE HELP: Chances are your human resources guidelines and executives will insist on bringing in an outside facilitator to help the company address any major issues with a problematic employee who may opt for legal action if things don’t go their way. There are pros and cons to that approach, so invest the time and energy necessary to find a good match for your unique and sensitive situation.

MISSING THE ELEPHANT: There’s no solidly agreed-upon origin story for the phrase “the elephant in the room,” from which we take the title of this episode. The closest we have is the passage The Inquisitive Man, from Russian fabulist Ivan Krylov.