10 annoying employee behaviors at work and what to do about them

It’s that time of year, when employee reviews are due, where we assess the employee behaviors that bother us the most and try to figure out what to do about them. Below are ten behaviors that experts around the world have identified as irritating, troublesome, or counterproductive along with a proposed solution to the problem. The ten are not in any particular order, but each has its own set of circumstances that impact the productivity or morale of a company in some way.

Promotion and / or raise seekers who haven’t earned their stripes

“If you want something different or better than the position you’re currently in, get the job done, play the part, win the job, and make it clear to everyone around you that you deserve it (without honking your own horn every five minutes) The easiest promotions occur when it is clear that someone is already doing the job and is capable of carrying it out. The worst situations occur when someone is promoted to a job for which they are not qualified. Everyone suffers in that job. stage, “he says. Dick Hoffman, owner of Hoffman Management Consultancy based in the Netherlands. “When someone is pursuing a title, promotion, or promotion so relentlessly that it makes everyone around them miserable, then it is often the time to recommend that they get out of the current situation and find another job.”

Falling asleep at work

Sometimes employees just don’t get enough rest, but falling asleep during work hours or meetings is unacceptable. Companies don’t pay their employees to nap. This is not only an obstacle for the company itself, but it really annoys other employees. An associate researcher in the San Francisco area recounts a recent incident of sleeping at work where the result will always have two behavior-altering options: “If sleeping at work became a frequent problem for the employee, I would cite safety concerns. (which are applicable, as we work in an engineering / lab environment) and we give the employee the option of a) getting immediate help (and I would have to see documented proof that they were actually getting help) or b) face termination “.

Excuse the pun, but it’s hard to fall asleep on this one – quick and decisive action is required to save face and improve productivity. A general consensus seems to suggest that the best solution for your company is an immediate layoff if you discover someone frequently sleeping at work or during meetings. It is not the responsibility of the company to serve employees who do not get adequate rest.

Working as a team in an attempt to get a co-worker fired

This is on our list for the simple reason that executives and managers should be tasked with making sure the right people are “on the bus.” No amount of employee rebellion against one employee will benefit anyone, so it is best to keep the lines of communication open between all parties. If a riff is felt among constituents, discuss it to the best of your ability as a team. If a riot is unavoidable, try to satisfy everyone’s concerns by trying to restructure the team in a way that promotes functionality over personality differences. If things get tough, it may be necessary to fire someone as a last resort to allow the business to move forward.

Not understand the business

Ram Charan, a well-known business author and former CEO of Honeywell, mentions in his book What the CEO Wants You to Know, “When you look at it, business is very simple. There are universal business laws that apply whether you sell fruit from a position or are running a Fortune 500 company. “

If you are an employee, take the time to really understand how your employer makes money. If you’re a business executive, spend some of your time explaining how your business makes money so everyone knows the basics. This is the least you can do to improve your chances of long-term success.

Be a know-it-all

Nobody likes to be criticized or surpassed by their coworkers, especially if that person is not the boss. There are no employees in any company, including the CEO, who know all the answers to every conceivable problem. That is why there are people in various roles within the company. If there is a “know-it-all” among the group, the best solution is to confront that person and discuss the differences as a group. However, be careful not to make it look like you are composing the guilty party. If the person provides a valuable skill set to the organization, their goal is not to eliminate the employee, it is to discourage the behavior while continuing to capitalize on their unique strengths. On the contrary, if the person no longer provides tangible benefits to the organization, it may be time to encourage the problem child to seek employment elsewhere.

Eat at your desk

Nothing less than instituting a “please eat only in designated areas” policy will correct this problem. Companies should consider implementing this policy, if only to protect company assets such as the computer, keyboard, monitor, desk, chair, and telephone in each person’s work area. Grease can penetrate those objects and wear them down over time, not to mention the dirt and nasty residue that builds up. If you have carpet in your office, it is doubtful that you will want to replace it frequently due to repeated mishaps. While most people are careful not to spill things, accidents are likely to happen, so why not take steps to limit them to areas better equipped to hold them?

Dave Gullo, owner of California-based Snowboards-for-sale.com, puts a humorous twist on this, stating that “the chewing sounds are annoying. The worst case scenario is an employee who is eating KFC and working. at the same time touching your monitor leaving rainbow marks. ” Indeed!

Always playing the victim

If bad things are supposed to always happen to someone around you or even to you, it’s time to confront the guilty party. Complaining all the time without presenting workable solutions aggravates everyone in no time. Life isn’t always a picnic for anyone, but a constant negative outlook is demoralizing, to say the least. “The behavior of victims is disturbing because victims create drama, they are constitutionally incapable of taking responsibility for the decisions they make, which means they are intractable and incurable. Prevention through careful detection is recommended,” says Jane Plank, Senior Executive Vice President of Human Resources at Equity Consultants in Richfield, Ohio.

Plank suggests a quick corrective action, “when an employee’s choices become more problematic than the added benefit to the company, it is time to train them.” Preeti Kalra, Human Resources Manager for Dilithium Networks in India, encourages individual sessions: “Have several individual sessions with the employee and talk about the things that bother him, explain why things are the way they are and if the complaint is genuine, correct it. If you religiously follow this practice, you may be able to change the employee’s approach. “

Arrogance and control

It is difficult to deal with employees or bosses who display an attitude that they are somehow above the rules but also want to control those around them. When those situations arise, the garbage usually hits the fan quickly. To survive and grow from these difficult situations, Kathleen Erickson, Director of Sales and Business Development for Massively Parallel Technologies in the Denver area, suggests that there must be a culture of open communication that “when two people respect each other enough to say what’s on your mind and solve problems or clear up misunderstandings … things are going pretty well. “

Once the air clears, the relationship can grow and the organization can continue to thrive. “If we can humble ourselves enough to let creativity flow and appreciate the true talent and untapped potential in others, amazing things can happen before our eyes. Everyday heroes surround us … even in the place of job”. Erickson says.

Stubbornness

Simon Harriyott, founder of Sussex Geek Dinners in the UK, notes that someone with a hard head is problematic for him, “coming into a discussion with a fixed decision in mind and refusing to listen or consider alternatives. It is much worse when they have arrived. to the wrong conclusion. It’s hard to fix, but sometimes asking kind questions will make them think about their solution more deeply, and they may see flaws in their original decision. “

Said Hmaidan, senior information officer for International Finance Corporation, The World Bank Group in the DC area, agrees: “Since communication is the foundation of all conflict resolution and team building, people whose behavior tends to create a negative atmosphere and a bad vibe among the team. “Suggest this possible solution:” There are several ways to remedy this, but the most effective is by recognizing the point that the person made and creating a new possible scenario by placing the person in that stage to attract his / her attention, “then it is easier for him / her to see the point of view of others.”

laziness

Ah, who could leave out the annoying employee who just doesn’t want to work or refuses to put in the effort? David Benjamin, a direct placement recruiter at Variant Partners near Detroit, resents “the efforts and creativity of lazy employees who always make excuses as to why they or the company can’t succeed. They come up with the most creative ways. to spend your time proving your point rather than using that time wisely to become a success. ” In problematic situations like this, it is best to help the employee seek employment elsewhere, perhaps in another department within your organization, because it is doubtful that he will ever be happy in his current position.

What the problems have in common

In all of these cases, most experts agree that open communication can alleviate many problems. Some even suggest a more proactive and self-centered approach, such as the one used by Joao Trindade, International Manager at Wisse Financial in Trinidad, “What I’ve always tried to do was understand that person’s motivation and try to change the way I worked with them, to get the best that this person had to give to the company (if the mountain does not go to Moses …). I would say that after a while people understand that they are being treated differently and they will try to understand by what. Sometimes when they find out why, they change on their own, which I think is the best method. “

Ray van den Bel, an independent consultant in the Netherlands, points out that sometimes people will just have to agree to disagree. “It depends on your own communication style, which is more annoying because some styles do not interact with other styles. Expressive people and analytical people are therefore often opposites.”

While there are no definitive and safe solutions to annoying employee behavior, opening the lines of communication seems to be the most popular elixir suggested by many experts. If you communicate openly with your employees and there are still major issues, it may be time to take a different direction so that both parties are happy and content.

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