WHOSE PROBLEM IS IT?

Being unclear about who owns the problem is a trap that many managers fall into. As I said earlier, some managers spend too much time solving problems and don’t do enough of the valuable feedback and coaching.

So when a problem arises, be it a business or people problem, ask yourself, ‘Whose problem is it? Is it mine or is it the team member’s?’

Say, for example, one of your team, Jane, was complaining that she hadn’t received her bonus or her expenses. You’re aware that all bonus and expense claims have to be submitted by the 12th of the month. You also know that Jane isn’t very good at getting her claims in on time. It would be so easy to accept this as your problem. You may think it motivational to resolve this for Jane, so you decide to phone the HR department or whoever deals with salaries and get Jane’s bonus organised. This may take a short amount of your time or it may take longer; however long it is, it’s too long. This is not your problem. It’s Jane’s and it’s up to her to resolve it.

Let me give you a definition of a problem: A problem is the difference between actual conditions and those that are required or desired. The problem belongs to the person who is unable or unwilling to accept the negative consequences of these differences.

Okay, so that might be a bit heavy, but the point is: does the problem above have negative consequences for your outcomes or for Jane?

Let me give you another example from personal life. Have you ever heard a mother say of her son, ‘Bob’s hopeless in the kitchen. If he didn’t have someone to look after him and cook his meals, he’d starve’? Of course, Bob probably would starve. Why? Because his mother always cooked for him. When Bob said he didn’t know how to boil an egg, his mother did it for him instead of coaching him how to do it himself.

If you continue to ‘solve’ problems for your team members, they will keep expecting you to do it.

Let’s look at four examples and decide whose problem they are.

• 1.Mark, one of my sales team, came to me one day with a tale of woe: ‘Those people in the accounts department are making life difficult for me. They’re really unhelpful and they’re stopping me from doing my job. You’ll have to do something about it Alan.’
• 2.Christine, the telesales manager I mentioned earlier, phoned me one day: ‘The team are complaining about Joan; she has really bad body odour and it’s affecting the morale in the office. What are you going to do about it Alan?’
• 3.David, another of my team, comes to me with two proposals that he’s going to put forward to a new customer. He lays them on my desk and says, ‘Which of these should I offer to the customer Alan?’
• 4.John, another field salesman, tells me, ‘This new product won’t sell on my area. I know it sells on other areas but there’s no market for it on mine, my customers are different. I think you have a problem with it Alan.’

In Example 1, is it my problem or is it Mark’s? It’s Mark’s. He wants me to talk with the manager in the accounts department and tell him to make sure his people are more helpful to Mark. That just isn’t feasible. It will only get people annoyed in the accounts department and it won’t resolve the issue.

In Example 2, is it my problem or is it Christine’s? It’s Christine’s. She wants me to speak to Joan about her BO problem; however, Christine is Joan’s manager, not me.

In Example 3, is it my problem or David’s? It’s David’s. He wants me to make a decision that will affect one of his customers. However, David is in possession of all the facts and I’m not. He was best placed to make the decision.

In Example 4 is it my problem or John’s? It’s mine. John is having difficulty selling this product. I know it sells on other areas and John’s lack of sales will have a direct effect on me achieving my targets, so it is my problem.

I’m not suggesting you ignore problems 1, 2 and 3. However, you must not fall into the trap of taking these problems on board and accepting them as your own.

Clearly identifying whose problem something is has a fundamental effect on your success as a Motivational Manager. It’s not just about you freeing up time to do other things or avoiding nasty jobs; it’s about making decisions that will have a positive effect on your team.

When it’s your problem

Let’s look at what we need to do when it’s the manager’s problem, as in Example 4. You need to find a solution by talking with the person involved. We looked at giving feedback in Chapter 5and the point was made about the importance of using ‘I’ messages and not ‘you’ messages. So let’s see how that would work in Example 4. It could give me more problems if I was to say to John:

• You’re not selling hard enough.
• You’re not pulling your weight.
• You’ve got some kind of problem with this product.
• You’d better do something about your lack of sales.
• You’re not trying hard enough.
• You should know better.
• You’ve let me down.

If I was to approach it this way, I’m more likely to annoy John. He might just switch off and he certainly wouldn’t be motivated to go out and get more sales. There would be resistance, resentment and possibly total submission.

It’s better to use ‘I’ messages such as:

• I’m unwilling to accept the level of sales in your area.
• I’m unhappy about your lack of sales.
• I’m willing to talk this through with you.
• I believe, between us, we can work this through.

I would then go on to ask John about any suggestions he might have for improving his sales. If he was unable to come up with anything, then I’d make some suggestions and ask him to come up with the best course of action. We would then agree the course of action and the date when we’d review the situation.

The Motivational Manager gets the team member involved in the decision making process; he gets their buy-in.

When it’s their problem

When the problem is a team member’s, walking away isn’t an option; as a Motivational Manager you need to help them find the answer to their problem. You need to help them understand that the problem is theirs and that they accept responsibility for solving it. Listen to what the problem is and:

• Ask lots of questions;
• Keep listening, empathise: ‘I don’t like that when it happens to me’;
• Ask them what they think they should do; what are the options?
• Ask them what the result of each option would be;
• Ask what other solutions might work.

In Example 1 I asked Mark to give me the full story and I asked further questions based on what he said:

• Who, specifically, are the people you have a problem with in this department?
• What exactly is it that they say or do that gives you a problem?
• How do you think you could approach this in future?
• Do you think you could use any of your sales skills to solve this problem?
• What will be your next step?

In Example 2, I explained to Christine that as she was Joan’s manager, it was her problem to resolve. I then asked her how she proposed to deal with it:

• How would she approach Joan?
• What would she say? What words would she use?
• How did she think Joan would react?
• How would she respond to what Joan said?
• What suggestions would she make if asked?
• Did she think ‘I’ messages would be better than ‘you’ messages?

In Example 3, I asked David:

• What options were best for his customer’s needs?
• What did he think was the best option?
• Why did he think this was the best option?
• Was this also the best option for our business – win-win?

In Examples 1, 2 and 3, helping the individual to solve their own problem is hugely motivational for them.

Problem of conflict in the team

You may come up against a problem where two members of your team are in conflict. For example, Mary comes to you and says, ‘I’m not happy working beside Joe. He’s always telling me what to do, he’s in my face and he criticises how I deal with customers. He’s a real pain and I want you to move me away from him.’

You know it isn’t possible to move Mary and you know it’s not your problem – it’s Mary’s. You need to respond as shown previously, when we looked at ‘When it’s their problem’.

Explain to Mary about ‘I’ messages and ‘you’ messages and encourage her to sit down with Joe to try to resolve the situation. If that doesn’t work and you feel it’s affecting team morale and your ability to achieve your outcomes, then you may have to take the following steps:

• Agree to sit down with them both at a specific time for a specific time;
• Ask them both to write down what the problems are and the options for solving the problems;
• Ask them both at the meeting to read their points and get an agreement on what the problem really is;
• Discuss each point and ask what is or isn’t acceptable to them;
• Identify which option has the least disagreement and agree to make it work;
• Set a time to review the situation.

As I’ve said before, you won’t win them all but if you don’t take any action you won’t win any.

Your job is to solve both business and people problems, and doing this the right way will increase your skill as a Motivational Manager.