All managers need to know how to handle employee complaints and address potential issues.
Harvard Business Review offers the following tips for managing destructive complaints and harnessing constructive ones.
- Express interest in the complainer’s observation and gratitude that he or she trusts you to help address it.
- Have an open conversation to uncover the nature of the complaint. The complainer may be providing valuable information, such as highlighting a problem that needs to be fixed or a potential opportunity.
- Why has the complainer come to you? If you believe he or she is venting because support is needed, respond with compassion. If the person is a chronic complainer who always is negative, the complaint likely reflects his or her attitude more than an objective problem; however, it still is useful to listen to a chronic complainer because he or she can help spot potential problems before they get worse.
- If a chronic complainer is negatively affecting your workplace or a complaint appears to be malicious, such as gossiping, it is important to immediately address the behavior. Sometimes employees do not realize how their tone or negativity affect others.
