How to have those difficult conversations with employees

Overview

This workshop teaches participants how to conduct difficult conversations about important issues with those they work with. It is aimed at skilled managers who need to manage difficult or challenging performance or behaviour at work.

Course Content

The workshop offers strategies for responding to staff, including preparing for and conducting conversations that address difficult aspects of performance, conduct or behaviour. The workshop covers the types of performance situations faced by managers, analyses performance situations and gives tools for managing difficult performance situations. These include individual motivators, assertion in the face of difficult behaviours, negotiation skills for performance scenarios, SMART goals for tying down performance requirements, changing one's perception of the situation and case studies for giving feedback to people who reject all feedback and those who are unaware of how their behaviour impacts on others.

Course Outcomes

By the end of this course attendees should be able to:

• identify the type of employee situation they face
• list their own motivators and the motivators of others
• use the knowledge of motivators to influence others
• use assertiveness techniques, including ‘I’ statements, as part of their employee conversations
• use negotiation techniques including identifying and using currencies and handling objections as part of their employee feedback conversations
• set SMART goals for themselves and others
• visualise their success in dealing with others
• develop an action plan for implementation.

Benefits to your organisation

• reduced stress for managers and staff by addressing performance issues early
• confident managers
• reduction of conflict in the workplace

Benefits to you

• clear goals for meetings and identification of emotional responses to stress
• strategies for backing down, not backing off, and improved listening and observation skills
• stress managed in the context of difficult discussions and emotions used constructively