One of the challenges encountered by every manager is dealing with employees’ personal problems.

While the manager makes sure that the subordinate is capable of performing the assigned tasks, he must also avoid getting involved in any arguments or conflicts related to the personal life of the subordinates.

A manager can still manage to handle a troubled subordinate with sympathy and encouragement while making sure that the objectives and the company’s best interest will still be the focus.

Martin M. Broadwell, trainer and educator from Georgia suggest some approaches to managers on how to maintain balance in handling a scenario that will cause embarrassment to the employee or violate working relationship.

The first step the manager has to do is to specify the differences between the company working standards and the subordinate’s actual performance. Then ask what action should be initiated to improve performance.

This is the moment wherein the manager gives opportunity to the subordinate to disclose the problem, may it be personal or work related. The subordinate should feel the manager’s sincerity to listen without imposing.

As such, any employee who feels the sincerity of his manager’s concern and willingness to help may be encouraged to reveal the problem.

The next step is to determine the kind of problem the subordinate disclosed. If the problem is personal, it is best to refer the subordinate to experienced individuals who is an expert in handling the identified problem.

If the problem is about poor performance, a receptive manager can bring back the employee into performing based on standard through support and guidance.

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1. The Value of Empathy in Managing People
2. How To Criticize Effectively
3. How to Deal with Rumors in the Workplace
4. How To Handle Errors in the Workplace
5. Changes Necessary Due to Conflicts