Sometimes when I am doing a presentation for company officers, I ask participants to think of a “problem employee” on their department. I ask them to think of a specific person — a name and a face. This task is easy for most people because every workplace has at least a few people who are perceived, for whatever reasons, as problems. Then I ask, “How many years does that person have on the job?” In nearly every case, the answers come back as 10, 15, 20, even 25 years.
How is it that people with problems can become so entrenched in a system? Why aren’t these problems dealt with early on? In some cases, they are. New firefighters sometimes do wash out of recruit school or fail to make probation. But once a firefighter gets a foothold in a department and is causing problems, the solution is nearly universal: that firefighter is transferred, and the cycle begins again.
There may be valid reasons why a firefighter should be transferred and in some cases, a new work environment and a new officer can make all the difference. However, in most cases, transferring a person with problems is just a way to avoid dealing with those problems. And in nearly every case, avoidance just makes the problems worse over time.
Unprepared for challenges
It is the responsibility of company officers to manage and lead the people under their control. Many company officers are pretty good at emergency scene management by the time they get promoted, as they have had time to hone their operational skills as firefighters. But few firefighters have any need or desire to make personnel decisions and so often come into the role of officer unprepared to deal with the challenges related to crew members with issues.
So when problems do arise, the easiest solution is just to move on — transfer someone and hope for success with the new group chemistry. One factor that encourages the transfer solution is that in the short run, it seems to work. When new teams form, members tend to be restrained and on their best behavior for awhile.
It is during the second stage of team development, storming, that conflicts and problems become clearly apparent. Transferring the person perceived to be causing the problem makes the newly formed teams revert back to the first stage, forming, which temporarily brings out the best in people. But if real issues exist, it is only a matter of time before problems develop again.
What this means is that you, as a company officer, might suddenly inherit a person with significant problems and more years on the job than you have. What will you do? The solution is not to immediately begin efforts toward getting that person transferred out, as tempting as it might be to do so.
Essential part of job
Your job as a company officer is to solve problems as you find them. You do this in an operational sense, not having the option to engage with certain kinds of emergencies and avoid others. When you are called to an emergency scene, you understand that you have the obligation to do something to help, whether you like it or not. So it is with personnel challenges. The first and most important step to resolving issues with so-called problem employees is to accept that person as your problem, and not hide out or avoid. Making every person on your crew a positive, contributing member of the team is the most essential part of your job.
But accepting the challenge does not mean that you have to go it alone. Quite the contrary —when a problem has been 15 years in the making it is unrealistic and unfair to expect that a new officer can solve it in six months and alone. A problem employee with decades on the job is like a fire that has been burning in a wall for hours or days — it may not look like much on the surface, but you are going to need significant resources to handle the root causes and collateral damages.
Some things to consider are:
- Don’t be afraid to ask for help, even as you accept the challenge of the difficult employee.
- Find out what resources exist with training, mediation, and professional development.
- Understand exactly how the disciplinary system works and what your role is in it.
- Keep your supervisor informed.
- Learn how to write clearly and document well.
- Do not take sides or promote a polarized atmosphere among your crew.
- Counter gossip with facts.
- Learn how to do effective coaching.
- Let all your crew members know that you have high expectations, the faith that everyone will meet those expectations, and the commitment to the success of everyone on the team.
There are valid reasons why employee transfers should occur. However, in most cases, transferring an employee with issues only makes the problem worse and delays any possibility of a real solution. As a company officer, you can choose to be part of that solution by stepping up to challenges instead of avoiding them.
