What should a manager do in the workplace when faced with an employee's backlash?

Foreword: The silence of all the horses is a kind of stability; the freedom to speak out, the hundredth voice, is another kind of stability, but the former hides the crisis, and the latter shows vitality.

In business management activities, leaders and employees can live in harmony most of the time, but sometimes there are situations where they are contradicted by employees. It is often awkward and embarrassing when employees contradict the leader, especially when the two sides accuse each other in public, or even fight.

It can be argued that the employee contradicting the leader is unnecessary for both parties, and the result is mostly a lose-lose situation. Although it is difficult to control the point of occurrence, frequency, and degree of subjective rebellious behavior, leaders can improve their ability to deal with crises and defuse rebellious behavior in a timely and effective manner.

Therefore, to be a good leader, one must have a strategy to defuse staff backlash, just in case it is needed, by trying the following methods.

-1-

Treat them differently

There are only two situations in which a leader encounters staff backlash: one is for business, and the other is for personal reasons. In both cases, leaders have to classify and treat them differently.

➤ If the employee is bumping back because of the public, it means that the employee's starting point is good, but the way and method are not appropriate. Then the leader needs to treat the situation fairly, not with selfishness or self-interest, and not to confront the employee with tit for tat.

The best way is for the leader to discuss the matter with the staff, and if the staff's suggestions are fair and reasonable, they can be adopted, and those that cannot be adopted should be clearly explained, and the staff should not be denied directly.

➤ If the employee is contradicting for personal reasons, then the leader needs to judge the employee's intentions. For employees whose personal interests are not met, reply as soon as possible if you can give an explanation and reply on the spot; if you cannot reply immediately, you can promise to investigate and give a reply afterward.

Of course, requests that are contrary to the employee's principles should be rejected and refuted immediately, without overstepping the disciplinary bottom line and ethical principles.

-2 -In the middle of a fight

Turning a problem into a problem by adapting to the person

It is a process of gradual evolution, often from small to large, from hidden to visible, from the germ to the intensification. At the same time, the staff's backlash against the leader is also related to the leader's or the unit's decision, and specific events, so the leader needs to be appropriate to the person, specific analysis of the specific problem, to turn the problem into a good thing.

1、Actively communicate and convince people with reason

An important symptom of staff backlash against the leader is that communication between the two sides is not timely and proactive. There may be both cold sides, or one side is active and the other passive, which will easily lead to "old hatred, new hatred and knot", more and more deadlocked, difficult to clean up.

The leader, as a superior, should take the initiative to communicate with the staff to eliminate misunderstandings. Of course, there are many ways to communicate, from direct interviews in the office to indirect communication by email.

Regardless of the method of communication, the leader who is being confronted should not use strong words or rhetoric, nor should he or she use strong-arm tactics to force the employee into submission. The correct approach is to attack the heart, the leader should lay out the facts to the staff, reason, and explain patiently and carefully their mistakes, to move with emotion and reason, so that the staff will be convinced.

2、Discharge the "flood" and drain the "sand", and use static brakes

Employees sometimes bump into the leader out of a grievance or anger, then the leader can take reasonable ways and channels to let them vent this negative emotion. When employees vent their emotions, they may be more aggressive, use too many words, or even go too far.

As a leader, you can let them vent to their heart's content, and after they have calmed down, choose a certain time and way to help them distinguish right from wrong and criticize or guide them. Usually, after venting, the employee's mood will be slightly relieved, which also shows that the employee takes the lead as the backbone and seeks emotional support and psychological dependence on the leader. When the venting is over, the rain clears.

When employees contradict the leader, it is often accompanied by strong words or even exaggerated body language, and the leader who is contradicted needs to maintain emotional restraint. As some employees are already fierce and irritable, they will deliberately make you angry.

At this time, the leader should take a quiet approach, use softness to overcome rigidity, avoid hard feelings, wait for the fire to subside, then lightly point out their shortcomings, so that they understand what is going on and understand the reasoning. By choosing the strategy of breaking with stillness, the leader can make the staff's backlash seem like a punch on cotton - there is no strength to make it, effectively avoiding the expansion of the conflict and the intensification of the backlash.

3、Side attack, severe criticism

Some employees think they have a backing and background, despise or even ignore the presence of higher leaders, some employees think they are old and qualified, disdainful of young leaders, and some employees think they have no desire and do not take the leader's work arrangements seriously.

When these people encounter criticism from their leaders, they often dare to contradict them, believing that they dare not and cannot do anything to them. The leader should be brave enough to speak up when dealing with this type of staff, and should not give in easily, not only to criticize them from the front but also to criticize them from the opposite side, with words in this and meaning in the other.

Of course, there are very few employees who, because of their interests, deliberately find fault with the leader, knowing that they are not in the right, but also forceful words, intent on creating trouble to make things difficult for the leader. For this kind of staff unreasonable contradiction, the leader should stand up for himself and not compromise, and seriously righteously criticize him. In serious cases, it is necessary to educate and talk to them through the higher authorities and the leader.

-3 -

Don't overpower people with power, fully respect them

In daily work, if the leader is generous to the subordinates, can not treat them equally, make small moves in job promotion, training and learning, salary increase, etc., the standard of implementation is biased, and the specific operation is not about dedication, style, system, the upper and lower levels will create a rift and cause conflict.

On this premise, the staff will appear to be justified in contradicting the leader. The root cause of this situation is the leader's arbitrary use of power and the fact that he is not on an equal footing with the staff.

As a leader, it is wise to promote democracy and respect for employees to efficiently resolve conflicts. Leaders need to be aware that both senior managers and front-line employees are equal before the law, personality, and ethics.

Employees have the right and qualifications to express their views and opinions. As a leader, you should fully respect your employees and actively defend their rights and qualifications, rather than rudely suppressing and inhibiting them. This is not only a question of the leader's management thinking and philosophy but also a question of the leader's attitude towards the staff and the art of leadership.

It is a kind of stability when all horses are mute and all birds are silent; it is another kind of stability when all voices are spoken freely and all schools of thought contend, but the former hides a crisis and the latter shows vitality.

-4 -

Be reasonable and take the initiative

The leader has the advantage of etiquette and reasoning, so when dealing with the staff's backlash, he or she can be reasonable and make three points, to retreat.

As a leader, you should learn the art of dealing with mistakes, of being wrong without being wrong. Therefore, if the leader can discuss and solve the problem harmoniously, there is no need to lecture and criticize; if the problem can be dealt with in private and alone, there is no need to raise questions or make a fuss.

If the problem can be solved by reminding and hinting, there is no need to simply and brutally accuse, to avoid embarrassing the staff. If the leader takes the initiative to let the staff behave reasonably, the staff will be grateful afterward.