When Are Your Employee Development Costs Underwater?

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I’ve been thinking quite a bit lately about development vs. performance.  How much money should you put into an employee to get out of them the performance that you need vs. how much money should you pay to get the talent that will perform at the level you need without having to develop them.  Remember – Training and Development are two different things.  Training is the knowledge you give someone to do a specific function or job at your company that is unlike another company.  Development is knowledge you give an employee that will help them at your company, or any other company – it’s transferable.  Yes, there’s some gray area – some training will help some at other places as well.

Here is the dilemma – you have a position to fill – and you can do it a number of ways but two are predominant –

1. Hire High Level Talent – will cost more, but you don’t have development costs, they will come in and perform at a higher level right off the bat.  Let’s think about an engineer with experience – for $85K

2. Hire lower/no experience Talent – costs you much less, but you’ll have a ton of ramp up time to get them up to speed and performing at a level you need. Let’s think about the same engineer at $45K.

So, our opportunity cost seems to be around $40K in development -simplistically (clearly the opportunity costs are much greater taking into account an experienced person in the short-term will produce more, make fewer errors, etc. – so $40K is just the salary difference) .   If you were to take $40K and a young fresh engineer with a great attitude – could you have them producing the same as an engineer with 5 years experience within a year?  That’s the $40K question right!?

As HR Pros we tend to gloss over this entire equation on every position we have and let our hiring managers tell us what they need, instead of really analyzing the organization needs short-term and long-term.  If a group already has 80% of their headcount with under 5 years of experience, maybe it makes perfect sense to go after the senior talent. But if the group is loaded with senior talent and the hiring manager just doesn’t want to take the time and energy to “develop” a new employee – so they ask for another senior – are you really thinking strategically about your people needs?

The flip side of this is having the patience as an organization to know – we hired low level experience with a commitment to develop – we can’t freak out when the person is at 9 months and not giving us the same performance as our person with 10 years.  We struggle with this concept many times – and let our hiring managers pull us down with them.  “Well, there both engineers – so we shouldn’t expect different levels of performance.” Yes, we should – one has 1 year, the other has 10 years – they better be performing different – or I’m paying my 10 year guy way the hell to much!

The Big Question – When was the last time you sat down with a hiring manager and did and ROI on their employee development costs, as a comparison to the talent they have within their group?

 

What Over Communicating says about you…

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I’ve been told that I over communicate from time to time – I like to think it’s a good thing – that I’m transparent – that I’m keeping everyone in the loop – but in fact – over communicating is as bad as under communicating.   Over communicating usually starts because someone told you that you don’t communicate enough – so you go right-ditch, left-ditch in your attempt to correct – you over-correct.   Great communicators say what needs to be said, when it needs to be said and to whom it needs to be said – nothing more, nothing less.

So, what does Over Communicating say about you:

– That you can’t put together a clear and concise thought.

– That you don’t have buy-in from the group/person you are trying to communicate with, so you keep communicating hoping that will make them buy-in (this is the I’m going to keep talking until you cave into my way of thinking person – and you know – it works to often!)

– That you don’t value other peoples time.

– That you don’t know your audience.

– That what you have to say is more important than what others have to say or believe.

– That you like to hear yourself talk, or read the words you write.

Over communicating comes in many forms, but the one that drives me absolutely crazy is what I call the One Size Fits All Communication.  This is when a person has a specific problem or issue with something – but instead of directly communicating with the individual that can solve the problem – they communicate with a blanket approach.  See if this sounds familiar:

Mary isn’t coming into work on time – it’s not terrible, she is only 5 or 10 minutes late, or she’s there on time, but it’s running in the door right at 8am, and then isn’t settled down and working until 8:15am.  Everyone else in Mary’s department is there before their start time and working when they should.  Pam the supervisor sends out a memo to the entire staff reminding them when the staff starting time is, and what is expected.  She goes on to tell the staff what discipline will ensue if this rule isn’t followed (up to and including Termination! Us HR folks love the phrase “up to and including termination” – I should sell t-shirts that say that!).

Very familiar, right?!  You’ve probably seen one of these memos in the last 90 days!

What does this say about this leader?  Clearly, they are conflict avoidant and lack the ability to deal with problems head on.  The problem with this approach is that the leader loses credibility with the rest of her staff.  They all get it – they all know Mary is a slacker and taking advantage – then Pam goes off and slaps each of their hands for something Mary is doing. Many times, over communicators are individuals that fear direct conflict, and their over communication is a veil drawn over their fear to deal with problems head-on.

What can you do?  Be straightforward.  Check for understanding and clarity. Move on.

Things…

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Keeping with the Friday Things… idea (Laurie Ruettimann told me Friday’s are the worst day to post because of low traffic, so not to waste really good content on Fridays – and I do what Laurie says because she is wildly more popular than I – even though my writing is much better – but with less cat talk! On a side note – I thought the folks at FOT liked me as well by always giving me the “Friday” slot each week – for a long time – until I found this out – guess the joke was always on me!  But let’s face it, I’ll take any day at FOT!)

James Bond 007– For my money there is only one James Bond and he is – Sean Connery.  Roger Moore was a close second, all the others have just been pretenders.  When TNT or TBS run their mid-summer James Bond marathons, I’ll catch myself sitting in front of the TV for hours on a beautiful sunny day watching Dr. No or Goldfinger for the 12th time. Yes, I waste too much of my life.

 Side note – Elvis– when I was 19 or 20 I had ankle surgery over a Christmas break during college, so I spent a couple of weeks stuck on a couch – but for my benefit (I believe) TBS ran every Elvis movie ever made – back-to-back – and while I was a cursory fan of Elvis’s music – I became a huge fan of his movies over that period for the simple fact that he made an enormously large amount (33!) – he sang most of his dialogue – no matter what the role – and they always had pretty girls without many clothes (and if you actually watched them you would laugh out loud at how quickly and cheaply these were put together).  I think the producers of Elvis movies got it – very popular, good looking male lead singer, girls wearing bikinis – doesn’t matter the plot – you’ll sell tickets!

Side note II – I’ve never met another person my age who likes Elvis movies. 

Mountain Khakis – When you’re built like a fire hydrant, as I am – you struggle to find clothes that fit off that rack and don’t need to be tailored – but I’ve found one! – Mountain Khakis.  I’m a huge fan of this brand – they’re expensive, but they are good!  I’ll pay for quality – my Poppy (grandfather) always said it only costs a little more to go first class.   Plus, since I’m a University of Wyoming grad – I love the fact these guys are based out of Jackson Hole, Wyoming!

Easton Town Center– you probably need to put this into perspective, since I live in DeWitt, MI, but I think I’ve found and great mall in the entire world in Columbus, OH!  Who knew?!  Believe me, my wife and I are shoppers and we’ve been everywhere in the country shopping – but I’ve never found a single location like Easton Town Center.  For me it’s probably the combination of almost every store you can imagine with every restaurant you can imagine all being at one location – in a neighborhood type setting that makes you feel like you’re walking around a small town – when it’s really just one big outdoor mall.  Very cool – my wife is scheduling her girls weekend down there soon.

It’s Better To Make A Wrong Decision Fast

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For those that don’t know – I played and coached volleyball for a great deal of my life – being from Michigan I can tell you that is rare (being a male) and I got called “gay” more than once while fundraising to make money to pay for traveling nationally for major tournaments (I think the actual phrases were more like “don’t girls only play volleyball”, etc. –  welcome to the rust belt). Anywho – one piece of my coaching stuck with me (we used with our middle blockers) that I also have used into my adult life and I use it still today:

It’s better to make a wrong decision fast, then make the right decision to slow.

Why?  In volleyball,  when you go to block you have to make split second decisions – you have 3 options – block middle, block right side hitter, block left side hitter.  You rely on your instincts, you rely on communication from your teammates and you survey the situation (where is the pass coming from, where is the setter, how far off the net is the setter, etc.) – then you make a decision.  The problem most middle blockers have at a young age – is they want to be up on every block – they want to make the right decision every time – but by doing this, they rarely make it to block any position – because they are frozen with indecision.  I taught my middles to decide quick, and then do it – do it 110%!  Go to which ever spot you decided to block and block – even if the ball went to another position!

Why?  Some positive things happen by you making the wrong decision quickly. For starters it allows your teammates to make adjustments they need to make to try and get the best possible outcome – believe me your back row players know you made the wrong decision – because they’re staring down the hitter with only one blocker – BUT – it also allows them know how to try and defend that.  If your late, and you have a hole in the middle of block – now they have to guess where to go – fill the hole, cover the line, take cross, etc.  It becomes a guessing game – which you rarely win. What happens if you make the right decision to slow?  About 99% of the time, what was going to happen, already happened – you didn’t make the decision, it was made for you – I like being in control, so this isn’t an option I like.

So what?  Fast Company has a wonderful article on this concept called: Why Keeping Your Options Open is Really, Really Bad Idea – from the article:

Why does keeping our options open make us less happy? Because once we make a final, no-turning-back decision, the psychological immune system kicks in. This is how psychologists like Gilbert refer to the mind’s uncanny ability to make us feel good about our decisions. Once we’ve committed to a course of action, we stop thinking about alternatives. Or, if we do bother to think about them, we think about how lousy they are compared to our clearly superior and awesome choice.

Most of us have had to make a choice between two colleges, or job offers, or apartments. You may have had to choose which candidate to hire for a job, or which vendor your company would engage for a project. When you were making your decision, it was probably a tough one–every option had significant pros and cons. But after you made that decision, did you ever wonder how you could have even considered the now obviously inferior alternative?…

When you keep your options open, however, you can’t stop thinking about the downside–because you’re still trying to figure out if you made the right choice. The psychological immune system doesn’t kick in, and you’re left feeling less happy about whatever choice you end up making.

This brings us to the other problem with reversible decisions–new research shows that they don’t just rob you of happiness, they also lead to poorer performance.

I tend to run into this with younger workers who want to make the right choice, fearing “death” or some other less desirable outcome if they make the wrong choice.  They tend to defer decision making to their boss or a peer instead of making it themselves, thus giving away the chance for superior performance. When in reality, all I want is for you them to make any choice, and we’ll live with the outcome.  I hire great people, so I’m sure they’ll make very wise, research driven decisions – and even then, sometimes they’ll fail.  I’m willing to live with that – if – it’s fast, because that allows us to adjust and find a way to make it right.

Two things at play in this concept: 1. Fast action; 2. Failure is an option, that we can live with.  Give me those two things, and I’ll show you an organization that is on the move – and that can block pretty well!

Things…

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There are many times I have a few things on my mind, but not enough to actually put a full blog post together – so I’ve decided when that happens I’m just going to mash a bunch of those together so I can get them out of my mind.  Here goes some things:

– Circus Peanuts– you know the orange sponge like candy that nobody actually eats – yeah – I like those.  To be honest I haven’t had one in probably 15-20 years because of the embarrassment I think I’d feel if I actually bought a bag, plus the fact that as I got older I couldn’t really wrap my mind around what they were.  The texture is unlike anything you’ll ever put in your mouth – unless you have a weird thing and like putting smooth sponges in your mouth. (see I told you theses were some things!)

– Skinny Girl Margaritas – My neighbor Kris Dickens gave me a bottle of Skinny Girl Margaritas this week (Thanks Kris!).  While that sounds completely metro-sexual – ok, that’s completely metro-sexual.  My wife and I watch a ton of reality TV and Bethany Ever After is one of the shows we’ll catch – and so I really like Margaritas and I make a very good Margarita myself – I wanted to try these famous Skinny Girl Margaritas.  So, here’s my review:  Skinny girls are skinny for a reason – they don’t eat or drink – so it’s probably best if you go for a margarita or any food or drink for that matter made by someone who actually has a little more “substance” to themselves.  What does that mean?  Skinny Girl Margaritas are strong (good for the Mom’s wanting to disconnect from reality) but light on actual flavor – which would add calories.  Maybe Bethany can make a Fat Girl Margarita which would probably be a little sweeter and talk to me.

– Crazy Sports Dads – I have more stories of crazy-ass sport Dads than I care to remember – and it seems to be getting worse.  I had a father explain to me this past week the “importance” of teaching 6 and 7 year old kids a lesson in failure (striking out in baseball).  To give you some perspective – first time “real” baseball for many of the kids, coach pitch, this guy says if they swing 3 times and miss, they’re out – go make them sit down.  I wanted to maybe give them a couple of additional swings, knowing that some 6 and 7 year old kids – especially those not growing up in a sports family – might struggle being their first time out.  Mr. Baseball wanted to teach “lessons”!  So, here’s what I know – the game of baseball is almost all based in failure – you’ll make millions of dollars in baseball failing 70% of the time – there is no other profession in the world that would even keep you employed if you failed 70% of the time.   If I’ve learned anything in life it’s that if someone feels some initial success at doing something, they’re more apt to continue to work at, and get better at, that skill. If they fail, initially, they are more apt to quit.  Good job Crazy Sports Dad! 

–Crazy Sports Dad, part 2 – Can you stop yelling at your kid while they are in the middle of a game, because you feel they have somehow personally let down you, your entire family heritage and our nation!  Guess what Sherlock – they didn’t strike out just to spite you – they were actually trying – but it’s a hard game – in which they will fail more than they will succeed – you screaming at them from the sidelines, like you have you bet your house on the game – isn’t helping them get better.

3 Steps To Finding The Smartest Employee In Your Company

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I couldn’t sleep the other night, probably because of the 14 Diet Dews I had throughout the day, but I had an Epiphany while staring at the ceiling in the dark.   I figured out a way for HR Pros to find the Smartest Employee in their Company!  It isn’t a complex algorithm or a set of cognitive assessment tests – it’s a simple matrix – but it’s very effective.  Now, you might be asking yourself:

 “Why do I need to find the smartest employee in our company?”

Which would be legitimate – unfortunately at 2 a.m. I didn’t ask myself that same question – I just thought I came up with some crazy Einstein type shit!  But, like most things I deal with, I can come up with a plausible argument to why it’s important to find the smartest people in your company.  My reasons:

1. Smart people have the potential to do smart things.  In an organization you want to make the right decisions – usually dumb people don’t.

2. Smart people usually know other smart people. In an organization you want to get rid of your dumb people, and hire more smart people.

3. Smart people know the fakers.  Organizations make people selection mistakes, it happens all the time, don’t be embarrassed, just don’t let one decision turn into another by keeping a mistake.  Smart people know your bad hiring mistakes, because they can read through the B.S.

Now for the Matrix!  Like I said it’s simple – which is also why it’s genious, because anyone can do it.  It goes a little something like this (hit it!) –

First Step: down one side of your matrix list your employees by level of responsibility. Most responsible at the top, down to the least responsible at the bottom.  Some of these you’ll just have to do the eyeball test on, and slot people as you see fit – don’t get to worked up over this – just get the most responsible up top, the least down low – the ones in the middle don’t matter anyway.

Second Step: Across the top of the matrix list total compensation of each person to the corresponding column.  For the most part you should end up with a sheet that shows the most responsible person in your organization, making the most money, and slowing but surely working your way down to the least responsible, least amount of money.

Third Step: The Smart Employee Search.  Here’s where the rubber hits the road!  Now, look at your matrix and find the highest paid employee, with the corresponding least amount of experience.  Boom! You just found your smartest employee.

I told you it was easy!  This person has figured out how to, relatively, make the most money by having virtually no responsibility.  Say what you want – but that is one smart person!  You need to pull that person in and find out how to get them more engaged into your daily operations.  Don’t take this as a joke – dumb people don’t figure this out – you just don’t fall into a highly paid, low or no responsibility job – you have to work to get there.  Don’t underestimate this person’s capabilities – because guess what – everyone else has!  That’s why your working your butt off until 6pm, and they’re out the door at 3pm going to their golf league – for about $4000 less than you make. They’re going home with no stress, while you’re on your 4th therapist – this year.   They love coming to work – you have a hard time pulling yourself out of bed.

I love these employees – I try to hang with them, learn from them – I feel like I’m an anthropologist learning about a forgotten species – they intrigue me so.  A word of caution though – don’t try and capture and change these employees – don’t try and be “smarter” than they are – and change their job or their scope or their pay.  Remember, they’re smarter than you – you’ll just frustrate yourself as they find another position – doing even less for more!

Don’t Give Me Remarkable

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You want to know the exact equation that will guarantee your kids will spend more on therapy bills then a college education? Expect them to be Remarkable.  I’m learning this right now.

I have a 14 year old son – he’s remarkable – at least I think so.  He’s a baseball player and by saying that I know I’m labeling him – because he also loves basketball and golf and Call of Duty on Xbox and his girlfriend and his best friend and his little youngest brother and, dare I say, math (which he’ll deny! – love might be a bit strong).  But he plays baseball like he was born to do it – he feels at home on the diamond.  That doesn’t mean he’s the best, it just means that’s where he prefers to be – thick leather glove on his hand, fresh mowed grass, sun burning down on the back of his neck, salty sunflower seeds stuck in his cheek – it completes him.

Those who know 14 year old boys and baseball – also know – baseball is a game that has more failure than success, by far.  Expecting one to be remarkable, to be error-free – is expecting the impossible. But I’m a Dad – I expect the impossible – I expect Remarkable.  Parenting is funny that way – you have to have high expectations, because it’s really the only way you ensure yourself for kids to reach higher – but trying to determine what that limit is, is next to impossible.  How high, is to high? 

We live in a society where everyone is trying to be remarkable. Somewhere along the way, it stopped being Ok, to just be, Ok. To be good, but not great. To be a part of a team, but not be the star.  We have gotten ourselves into a cycle that is very difficult to manage.  How do you manage a team of people where each one is attempting to be Remarkable – when you don’t need them to be Remarkable.  I need my Accounts Payables to go out each Thursday before noon – that isn’t remarkable – it just is the job that needs to be done. So, how do you manage the person doing that task who is trying to be remarkable?  Look, getting them out by Wednesday at noon isn’t remarkable, it just shows me that we can now move up the schedule another day, I’m fine with Thursday.

I’m scared for a future where everyone feels the need to be remarkable in everything they do.  I don’t need remarkable, I don’t expect remarkable.  I think remarkable happens when a team of good gets together, works together, to make remarkable things happen – not an individual. 

So, I tell my son – I don’t need a hit every time your up to bat,  I don’t need you to strike every kid out, I don’t need you to make every play.  I need you to help your teammates, to help make them better, to try and give them what you can deliver at that moment.  Give me 9 kids all attempting to do their best, and that will look pretty Remarkable! 

(now can someone come sit next to me at games and remind me of this – each pitch!)

Stop Thinking Out of the Box!

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If I hear someone tell me they are getting “out of the box” one more time, in terms of solving a problem, I’m going to shoot myself!   “But Tim! Isn’t that what every boss wants to hear?”  (is anyone annoyed, yet, that I ask myself questions in my posts, because I assume the reader is to dumb to ask these questions themselves!? Me, I am!) Anyway, one of the only reasons someone gets out of the box, if they are somewhat intelligent, is they are trying to find a way to solve the problem, by doing less work.  99.9% of all of your problem can be solved by just doing the work that is in front of you – but that can be hard, time consuming and takes discretionary effort.  So, we get “out of the box”! 

We feel this need to do more with less, think smarter not work harder, find a way to work an end-around, around this problem.   We tend to value “out-of-the-box” thinking over “plain-old” hard work.  One of my 3 rules of Blogging is: I can’t talk about my wife (it’s just like the Fight Club rules) – first rule of The Tim Sackett Project – can’t talk about the wife.  So, let’s just say there is a special woman in my life (you’ll come to learn I’m not a very good rule follower). This special woman is the most successful person I know, personally, in my life – there hasn’t ever been a time in her life when she was not wildly successful at whatever it was she put her mind to (again this isn’t my wife ;).   Now my special woman friend, is not an out-of-the-box thinker, in fact she very much likes being in the box – it’s warm and comfortable and you know what to expect.  Remember, she’s not successful – she’s “wildly” successful!

So, what does she do – she works harder than everyone else – always.  In fact, if there is any easy way to get something done, she won’t accept it, she’ll find a harder way to do it!  She sees a problem and immediately goes to work on it, gets dirty, sweats, stays up late, gets up early, and flat out-works everyone else to solve the problem.  We tend to over value Out-of-the-Box thinking in our society.  Don’t get me wrong, there is a time and place to creative thinking and planning – but there is also a time and place for hard work – and that time and place should be taking up more time than most of us are allowing for.  Too many buy into Abe Lincoln’s quote: “Give me 6 hours to cut down a tree, and I’ll spend the first 4 sharpening the ax.” That’s great – but if your “ax” is already sharp enough, start chopping down that damn tree!   Eventually the diminishing returns law comes into effect, the ax can only be so sharp, where is actually helps you cut faster – after a certain point you’re just sharpening to sharpen.

What did we learn:

1.  There is absolutely no replacement for hard work (try assessing for that!). 

2. Creative thinking is wonderful, to a point, and that point is when work needs to get done.

3. I’m not seeing another woman – my wife is a really hard worker and wildly successful and this isn’t a make-up piece!

The World’s Toughest Recruiting and Retention Challenge!

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As HR Pros we all have our greatest recruiting stories and retention saves – and as HR Pros – we always think ours are the worse!   With the killing of Osama Bin Laden recently you would think the Navy SEALS have the easiest recruiting and retention job in the world right now – wouldn’t you!?  I mean let’s face it – the SEALS are 2011 Rock Stars.  Every guy wants to be one, and every girl wants to date one (well, and maybe some guys to – I’m inclusive being in HR!) But, a recent Newsweek article, The Coolest Guys in the World, tells a different story:

They were already a semi-legendary bunch, a wing of the Navy that attracts gung-ho soldiers who drink snake venom and punctuate kills with a kiss to the victim’s cheek (if their memoirs are to be believed). Swagger, perhaps, but also inevitable. SEAL training takes at least two years—about the same as it takes to become an astronaut—and includes an agonizing combination of brain and brawn, topped with five days of simulated battle stress. The men call it “Hell Week” (official name: Motivation Week), a regime of bullets, bombs, and extreme endurance tests. Men can ring a bell to quit at any time, and historically two out of three do. There are only about 2,500 SEALs worldwide, and an estimated 200 in Team Six, the squad that picked off three Somali pirates from 100 feet on rough seas in 2009.

But the SEALs haven’t always enjoyed such heady days. In fact, the bin Laden mission is a bright spot in a history marked by scandal, failure, and, most recently, a decade of stalled recruiting efforts. That may not change. “Recruiting is a big problem, and retention is an even bigger problem,” says former senator Bob Kerrey, a Medal of Honor–winning SEAL during Vietnam. “Ninety percent of a SEAL’s life is training, preparation, and being bored to death.”…

In recent years the Navy has stepped up its efforts to find such pros, offering a $40,000 bonus to recruits who survive basic training, and scouting out men who can do just that. The profile is very specific. The men most likely to succeed as SEALs, according to a 2010 Gallup study commissioned by the Navy, are at least 5 foot 8 and 162 pounds, eschew the Big Four sports for pastimes like water polo, snowboarding, and lacrosse, and hail from “New England, the northern Plains, or the West Coast.” Their average age is 22 to 25.

As Talent Pros we always go after the best talent we can find.  Can you imagine having to go after such a specific profile, only to then have to ask them not to be who they are most of the time!?  We want you to be America’s most feared killing machines, but hey just wait over their for a few months and we’ll give you call when we need you.  That is a major Retention Challenge!  We want the worlds greatest adrenaline junkies, who have a on/off switch.  And don’t tell me this isn’t a Recruiting Challenge – sure everyone is knocking on your door to be a SEAL – but you don’t want everybody – you want a very specific profile – you want a Needle in a Haystack!

So, what’s the most challenging recruiting and retention scenario? The one where everyone wants the job, you only want a very small few of them, and then wants they get the job they don’t want it any longer!  Welcome to the show boys!

 

What Makes Your Boss a Jerk?

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I tweeted out an article last week called “The 7 Worse Kinds of Bosses” that was taken from a Monster.com article.  I’m intrigued about the “Worse” boss scenarios not that there aren’t legitimately bad bosses in the world – but someones bad boss, might be someone else’s great boss.  Let me explain. I’m not a person who needs much feedback, I don’t need pats on the back, I don’t need birthday cards, I don’t need a letter sent to my Mom from my Boss (who happens to be my Mom!) saying what a great worker I am.  So, a great boss for me, tells me what needs to be done, when it needs to be done by, and what the expectations are for a finished product – then gets out of my way. 

Now, I have a buddy who I worked with for years – we were on the level in HR, just had different divisions we supported, even sat next to each other.  We were opposites, but both did a great job.  His great boss was someone who was constantly going to checking in, giving him feedback, check on progress along the way, give him suggestions on other ways to do the project, etc.  A little different from my Great Boss.  Ironically, we had the same boss! 

Being a supervisor/boss is tough for one reason – you’re going to have some people that work for you, that think you’re a Rock Star, some that think you’re alright – but they’ve had better, and some that think you’re completely worthless.  The best supervisors are ones that have enough self-insight to understand this concept and never believe they are a Rock Star and never believe they are Jerk.  The bosses that struggle are the ones who believe they can manage everyone one way – “this is who I am and they can like it, or leave it.”  It’s just not that easy – given those two choices – most will choose to “Leave it!”

So, what can you do as a HR Pro?

1. Get your “Bosses” (those hiring managers who supervise) to understand what traits make them Jerks.  Some 360 tools are good for this, but be careful, if the boss isn’t prepared for the feedback, this can go badly.

2. Get the employees in the bosses group to realize everyone has good and bad traits, and it’s up to us to value the good and help limit the bad.  A great Leader Transition meeting works very well for this, in setting leader/subordinate expectations from the very start.  A transition meeting allows both sides to let each other know what they value from a leader, and what the boss values from the worker. It will also set proper communication expectations.

3. If you have a “Jerk” supervisor – don’t waste to much time fixing them.  Adult Jerks, tend to stay Jerks – there is no training class in the world that is going to change them. So, you have two choices, and you might easily decide to go either way. One, get rid of them – employees will be happy, until the next lady comes in! Two, deal with the turnover.  Why would you put up with this? Maybe the Jerk gets great results and your organization values that.  Sometimes we put up with jerks – that’s reality.

What should you not do as a HR Pro?

Never get on a high horse after one employee tells you their boss is a jerk.  That boss might be another employees Rock Star and maybe that employee is a better performer.  Seek to understand their Jerkiness!