RESOURCES
Dealing with Diffi cult People: Tanks, Clams, Know-It-Alls and More
www.cpacanada.ca/en/career-and-professional-development/professional-development/ webinars/2014/May/how-to-deal-with-diffi cult-people
Dealing with Diffi cult People
www.dealingwithdiffi
cultpeople.info/index.htm Internal Confl ict Resolution Guidebook
www.dalecarnegie.com/ebook/confl ict-resolution/ Manage Confl ict, Resolve Confl ict, Prevent Confl ict confl
ict911.com/
— RS
and senior management involved to alter reporting structures, duties or even the location of coworkers’ desks, says Johnson. “I’ve seen cases of bad chemistry where two people just don’t fi t no matter how much you try,” she says. “One underlying issue with difficult people is that they tend to view the world only through their own lens and just don’t have the capacity to see other perspectives.”
Watch out for bullies (and report them) Being in power can prompt prickly behaviour, says Roberta Cava, author of Dealing with Diffi cult People, a book fi rst printed 25 years ago and now available in 17 languages. “I fi nd it’s not the clients or coworkers who are the biggest problem but the bosses,” she says. Cava notes that most managers haven’t been trained to prop-
erly supervise others. Common mistakes include disciplining or bullying staff in front of colleagues or clients, failing to provide a list of expectations so employees can adequately fulfi ll them, and being unavailable when staff members need help. “When it’s the boss who is using unacceptable behaviour, she or he is oſt en doing it to others as well,” says Cava. “Check with co- workers if this is the case and then use ‘group warfare’ to report the boss. Have everyone in the group put their complaints in writing — with their signatures — and have a representative speak to the HR specialist within your company.” When it’s an outside supplier caus-
ing grief, Cava suggests saying, “That’s unacceptable behaviour and unless you stop that behaviour I refuse to deal with you.” In some cases, a supervisor at the supplier’s company may need to be contacted. Failing to recognize the negative
impact of one supervisor almost cost Ken Sim a valued team member at his Vancouver-based company, Nurse Next Door. “We had a superstar employee who went from being the company’s biggest cheerleader to being disen- gaged when she got a new manager,” says Sim, who is cofounder and direc- tor of the company. “The two were like
oil and water and kept butting heads, and eventually the employee started caring less and less about the business.” As a result, the manager gave her a terrible performance review and Sim was certain she was “on her way out.” Fortunately, Sim had concurrently brought on a new opera-
tions manager who recognized the problem and got the employee back on track by having her report to a different manager. She is still with the company to this day. “I really believe people don’t quit companies but the people they report to,” says Sim. “In hindsight, I wish we had paid more attention to this issue in the past with other employees who had changed their behaviour drastically.” In the end, it’s also important to recognize that not everyone
is going to get along all the time. “As long as there’s general respect, a little bit of confl ict is healthy within a team because you need people to question basic assumptions,” says Martin. “Otherwise, you’ll get surprised by competitors or other threats you hadn’t anticipated.” It never hurts to indulge in a little creative introspection,
either. In other words, we shouldn’t forget to look at our own part in a diffi cult relationship or situation. As Martin points out, “It’s not necessarily your fault, but you may very well be contrib- uting to the problem.”
ROSALIND STEFANAC is a Toronto-based freelance writer
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MAY 2015 | CPA MAGAZINE | 43
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