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Dealing with Employees/Questions Answered by Expert Joan Schramm
| Subject | Date Asked |
| Character Questioned | 2/7/2012 |
| Q: I started a new job about a month ago at a large corporation. Last week, my boss, who is in another ... A: Kate -- If he's "taking you at your word", why is he instituting changes? I understand that you're ... | |
| backstabbing co-worker | 3/25/2011 |
| Q: I am a teacher and I travel to a few schools. It has come to my attention that one of the women I ... A: Sunny -- First, I apologize for the delay in answering you. I've been very sick, and haven't even ... | |
| Probation Letter | 2/6/2011 |
| Q: An employee 90 days probation is up and I must meet and evaluate her performance. Do you have an ... A: Linda -- To properly evaluate an employee, first thing is to make sure the employee knows the ... | |
| Power Hunger Coworker and A Paranoid Boss | 12/15/2010 |
| Q: 1)Paranoid Boss - I'm a Payroll Accountant who reports to a Payroll Manager; my boss reports to a ... A: Michelle -- 1) Paranoid boss. Your boss may be paranoid, or a micro-manager, or have issues with ... | |
| Upsetting/Tense Situation. | 11/6/2010 |
| Q: I don't know how to deal with my employee who is spending a lot of time with an ex employee that ... A: Dianne -- It is a difficult situation. I don't know what legal avenues there may be (especially in ... | |
| Lying Staff | 11/2/2010 |
| Q: I am a director at a church owned daycare center. We have rules that I have repeatedly told staff ... A: Wendy -- I apologize for the delay in answering this -- I never got a notice that I had a question ... | |
| employee that is not happy. | 9/13/2010 |
| Q: I have an employee that goes over my head to my boss when she is given a task to complete. Other ... A: Shirley -- You have a difficult situation since, for whatever reason, your boss isn't willing to ... | |
| Deputy | 6/14/2010 |
| Q: I am currently experiencing some difficulties with a member of my team. The team is headed up by ... A: Julie -- You need to put a stop to this behind-the-back stuff right now. Call her in for a ... | |
| Co-worker having difficulty coping with a colleague being promoted to their superior | 6/2/2010 |
| Q: I am a front desk agent at a lodging facility that has just had an opening for Supervisor for ... A: Juli -- Your situation is very common, and moving from being a worker to a manager can sometimes be ... | |
| Employee not being apart of the team | 11/15/2009 |
| Q: I am going to get straight to the point. We have a team member that has been with us for almost 2 ... A: Stacie -- Unfortunately, you may have to keep on having the weekly meetings with her -- especially ... | |
| sensitive payroll issue.... | 10/15/2009 |
| Q: To Whom it May Concern: I work as an independent contractor for a large company in Connecticut. ... A: Paul -- Your original contract with the company should have spelled out how you are to be ... | |
| difficult staff | 10/10/2009 |
| Q: What on earth do you do with two employees who do not agree with the decisions I make and complain ... A: Karen -- My first thought is, how is your senior management handling these tattle-tales? Are they ... | |
| staff can not trust | 9/17/2009 |
| Q: i manage a branch of about 9 staff members, my branch is situated away from our head office which ... A: Sunny -- It's very difficult to manage a situation like this when you don't have the backing of ... | |
| Employee who calls out frequently | 7/16/2009 |
| Q: I have an employee who is dealing with an intermittent medical condition and frequently calls out of ... A: Emma -- I'd sit down with the employee and ask him/her for suggestions on how best to handle ... | |
| Dealing with co-workers | 4/21/2009 |
| Q: I work for a company " workmans comp.," I work flex schedule 10 hr.,4 days a week. I am very focused ... A: Kim -- Frankly, I don't think it's your responsibility to tell your co-workers to stop yakking and ... | |
| co-workers going through my backpack | 4/1/2009 |
| Q: i needed to find out if it is legal for a co-worker to go through my backpack. she stated she ... A: Nancy -- It is absolutely unacceptable for a co-worker to go through your personal belongings. You ... | |
| Poor Attitude Employee | 11/4/2008 |
| Q: I am a office manager at my company and all problems relating to all admin and office employees is ... A: Jaenne -- It's a tricky situation. You sort of created a monster here, but unfortunately it's not ... | |
| multi jobs and one pay | 7/23/2008 |
| Q: my situation is about having a waitress job where i am also considered as assistant management mind ... A: Well, there's nothing illegal about what he's doing. He seems to be doing what he needs to do to ... | |
| Weak Managment Style | 7/2/2008 |
| Q: I was promoted rather quickly in my career to a manager. I have been praised by others for having a ... A: Russ -- You can be a strong, assertive (and nice) boss without being overbearing. Treat your people ... | |
| "Supervisor" with a grudge | 6/6/2008 |
| Q: I have worked with my company for about a year and a half, and in this particular office about 6 ... A: Kate -- I think this woman is probably feeling rejected and frustrated at the company for not ... | |
| Spat with Co-Worker Comes Back to Bite | 4/2/2008 |
| Q: A few months ago I was verbally attacked by a co-worker who was unhappy with the fact that I didn't ... A: I had a similiar incident with a supervisor a number of years ago, and I know how unfair it feels. ... | |
| Employee couching | 1/26/2008 |
| Q: Employee #1 uses her cell phone for personal calls alot. Emploee #1 should have been diciplined ... A: Linda -- Thanks for writing. My first question is, do you have any authority over these two ... | |
| Upper management seems to ignore me. | 1/19/2008 |
| Q: My question is that I think my manager and her boss don't seem to like my work. We work retail and ... A: Rosa -- You're right that going over your boss' head probably isn't a good idea. There must be ... | |
| human resources | 1/4/2008 |
| Q: As a manager, what actions would you take if an operations employee with six years of experience on ... A: First, assuming this is a valuable employee with recent performance problems, I'd have a frank and ... | |
| Co Worker Conflict and Weak Management issues | 9/15/2007 |
| Q: I apologize in advance for the length. There is a lot of information to provide. I am a television ... A: Melissa -- Wow, I'm exhausted just reading about this. You are WAY off the hook in this situation. ... | |
| Gaining respect and keeping control! | 8/20/2007 |
| Q: I was promoted to a management position last April and am now heading a team of women who were ... A: Well, the first thing you need to do is to get your boss to stop encouraging this woman. I recommend ... | |
| Uncooperative subordinates | 8/14/2007 |
| Q: i am a nursing manager. Despite talking and giving continuous support to subordinates, they do not ... A: I recommend that you have a meeting with all of your subordinates. Tell them that you would like to ... | |
| prepare staff for a new leader | 8/3/2007 |
| Q: given a not for profit organization, how can we prepare the staff for the leadership change? The new ... A: Julia -- Change is difficult in any situation -- people almost always prefer to preserve the status ... | |
| Backstabbing Employee | 7/8/2007 |
| Q: Two years ago my wife and I were given and opportunity to work at the same location by our company ... A: If it was me, I'd call this woman in for a meeting and not beat around the bush. I'd be professional ... | |
| Team Playing Issues | 3/7/2007 |
| Q: I have a little problem I’m hoping you can help me with. It’s about a group of colleagues that have ... A: Right now you don't have a team. You have four individuals who, to a greater or lesser extent, are ... | |
| Writer seeks Interview - questions | 2/5/2007 |
| Q: Joan: I am a writer for a publication called RT-Image, a part of Valley Forge Publishing Group, ... A: Happy to help! 1. Your name, title, organization, etc. Joan Schramm Owner Momentum Coaching ... | |
| Team Building | 1/3/2007 |
| Q: I want to know when it the best days and times for hold meetings? I am in a team that wants to start ... A: There really are no "best" days and times for meetings. It all depends on your company culture, work ... | |
| Too many cooks in the kitchen! | 11/9/2006 |
| Q: The company that now I work for is a small business, so with that comes flexibility and a relatively ... A: You're between a rock and a hard place. The owner hired you to clean up the company's act, but ... | |
| Satan and Satan's helper | 10/18/2006 |
| Q: I am in need of some serious help. I work in an office with three other women, a nurse, nurse ... A: On the surface, this question looks like a matter of some employees not liking the fact that one of ... | |
| Rightful Firing? | 10/12/2006 |
| Q: I am not sure if this is under your jurisdiction... but I am trying to figure out whether an ... A: I'm not a lawyer, so I can't address the specifics of any particular circumstance. However, a quick ... | |
| Firing due to Illiteracy | 9/6/2006 |
| Q: About a year ago, my husband and I hired a contractor to do renovations and maintenance on our house ... A: Let me preface this by saying that I am not a lawyer and so can't advise anything about whether or ... | |
| Obnoxious New Co-Worker | 8/29/2006 |
| Q: My new obnoxious co-worker feels the constant need to give everyone in the office her ... A: Wow! your new co-worker sounds like her emotional age peaked at around 12. My advice is to just ... | |
| Working for free? | 8/26/2006 |
| Q: I work the overnight at a small cardiac telemonitoring company. My boss seems to be one of those ... A: State law varies on lunch break compensation, so you need to check with your state Dept of Labor and ... | |
| co-worker conflict. | 8/14/2006 |
| Q: I am a computer engineer working for a big company. I had a serious tiff with a co-worker recently ... A: Here's what I suggest -- sort of a mix of your ideas. First, do continue to interact with "X" like ... | |
| bad egg | 8/4/2006 |
| Q: I have a full time employee of several years whose attitude has suddenly gone sour. Shows up at ... A: If she's a long-time employee who is suddenly having performance problems where none existed before, ... | |
Dealing with Employees
Answers by Expert:
Joan Schramm
Top Expert on this page
Expertise
I can answer questions about handling difficult employees, bosses or co-workers, motivation, team-building, and just getting along in an organization. I am an expert on conflict resolution and communication as well as other issues dealing with business relationships.
Experience
Joan is the Workplace Solutions Expert! She is a professional Coach and the founder of Momentum Coaching, www.achieve-momentum.com. Her experience is from over twenty-five years of business leadership, training and coaching.
Organizations
Coach Training Alliance, Coachville, Attractionville, 247 Coaching, Solo-E,SHRM
Publications
Many of my articles have appeared in local newspapers and online at sites like www.ezines.com, www.marketingseek.com, www.articlecity.com, www.exactseek.com and others.
Education/Credentials
BS in English
MS in Human Resource Management
Certified Coach through the Coach Training Alliance
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