Question

In 100 words state if you agree/disagree with the summary made about the adjustments needed for the plan of action.

NOTE: Scenario Part 2 is also provided.

Work place unrest Part two provides additional information based on talking with your people.

Jill:

You met Monday afternoon and had a positive and productive discussion. She reiterated what HR had said to me concerning email and talking to Jill. Jill felt she was not challenged job wise and that her and Jack were not getting along. She told you about what she considered bullying the day that people thought she was sick and Jack ordered her into the conference room. Jill stated she was not sick and Jack wanted to send her home and would not let up. She also discussed her working relationship with Jack that they were sometime at odds as she is a type A personality. Jill ended the conversation with that she wants to be challenged and work things out with Jack.

Jack:

You met with Jack right after he got back from vacation. Jack was a little taken back concerning the incident as he stated that Jill turned around waived a finger saying “you’re pissing me off” and ordering her into the conference room. Jack stated that he was concerned as were others in the work area because Jill had just gotten back from Africa and was sick. He said that he did order her to the conference room. Jack went on to say that Jill was having a hard time finding her role and continually asked what her job entailed. Jack thought he was patient in trying to explain her role to include finding her more challenging work. Jack also stated that he is looking for other work because her main project is about done.

Tami:

You talk with Tami in private who was in the area when the above confrontation occurred over Jill being sick. Tami stated both Jill and Jack got out of control. You brought up this point up (both out of control) to both Jill and Jack and they both nodded in acknowledgement. Tami was nervous and really did not have much more to say other than Jack and Jill were at odds with each other.

SUMMARY:

When looking back at my plan for dealing with Jack and Jill there are a couple minor tweaks that I would change. My meeting with Jill was was very positive and productive. I got a sense that she gained some trust in me after our discussion and I will work on getting her new tasks that challenge her. An employee who does not feel challenged can turn into a problem employee in a hurry. The fact she acknowledged that Jack and her were not getting along may be because of their personalities not meshing, but that is not an excuse for poor behavior. You have to make it work. She is open to working things out with Jack. After meeting with Jack, I got the sense that he was a little confused and irritated at first at the whole situation. The fact that he ordered Jill into the conference room and confessed to it may inhibit some bullying counseling if it is not cleaned up. There is a way to talk to your employees and there is a better way to go about it than he did. Jack did say that Jill is having a hard time finding her role and that he would look into getting her some more challenging tasks which could increase their work relationship and help Jill feel more appreciated in her job. Tami did not supply much information and was timid so what she was saying may not influence a decision at all. One key point that she brought up was that they were out of control with their behavior.

Tami does not want to get involved with the situation, but the information she provided did back up Jack and Jill's behavior. The fact that Jack and Jill did admit to their out of control behavior is a step in the right direction. However, this can not happen. Things seemed to boil over between the two and it should have been contained before it got to this point. After meeting with both Jack and Jill, I have come to a final decision regarding the two of them. The fact that they are both cooperative in their thinking of getting things worked out between each other is a positive sign that I can work with. Mediation is going to be the first step with myself as the mediator. I am still unsure about bias coming into play because of Jill thinking my relationship is better with Jack than her. If that does not work, then an arbitration would have to take place, involving a neutral third party. I will also recommend some sort of anger control training for the both of them to help with their out of control behaviors.

My reply to HR would be as follows: After meeting one on one with Jack and Jill, I have come up with a plan of action regarding their recent behaviors. Both meetings were positive and productive. A resolution that ends with success is definitely a possibility. The fact that both Jack and Jill said they want to be cooperative with one another is a step in the right direction. My first stage in the plan of action for them is to have a mediation between the two. I will be the mediator and we can discuss ways in which we can make the job better for both of them. Jill wants to be challenged so we will discuss ways in which we can achieve this. If this does not work, then we will move to an arbitration. I am hoping this is not necessary, but if Jack or Jill is unhappy after the mediation bringing in a neutral, third party may be the answer. I am still concerned that Jill went straight to you instead of coming to me to discuss the problem first. She may think their will be bias because of my perceived good relationship with Jack. Hopefully, this will solve the problem between the two.

On a side note, the fact that Jack and Jill both admitted to me that their actions were out of control I think there needs to be some sort of anger management prevention training. It would not hurt for the two of them to go through a short training with steps and tips to help control their anger. We can not have blow ups in our offices like the one they had because of all the potential negatives. I am suggesting just a simple one or two day training. Finally, in regards to the bullying claim Jill made on behalf of Jack, I talked to Jack and told him he can not do that and if it continues he may need some bullying counseling or even some sort of discipline. He understood and will work on it. At this point, I do not think any other action needs to be taken in this regards. I believe this plan will help better the relationship between Jack and Jill along with strengthening our workplace environment as a whole. Thank you!

Answer 1

Yes, I think that now the plan of action should be effective and successful for both of them because the primary objective was to bring both of them at the same line and once that is done situations can be handled through mediation but that may again be a issue as Jill may feel that I and bias towards Jack and in order to prove myself neutral I may end up favoring Jill. So if the parties are not satisfied with the mediation, arbitration is quite a good option and may help in this case because issues needs to be solved between them as both of them has accepted the fact that their actions were inappropriate to quite some extent. The plan of conducting anger management training for them is a good option as that will actually help them in their future endeavors.