As much as they try not to, every leader has their favorites. These people are typically the top performers. They think independently and creatively. They exceed expectations consistently. They are the people most co-workers look to for guidance when the leader is not around. But in a lot of cases, they can also be the people who save other peoples’ butts, especially those who are not, or cannot, pull their own weight.
While this might be understandable, it can also hide weaknesses within the overall organization. Eventually, the crap hits the fan when too much of this takes place, and the leader has scramble to recover. As the leader, you might feel frustrated, betrayed, even angry because no one said anything about those who weren’t performing and now you’re dealing with the consequences.
There may have been signs that things were not all that well. But we all can delude ourselves into thinking that these problems are just one-offs. When these issues come to light, you might have said, “Why didn’t you say anything?” to those covering poor performance. Of course, you don’t want to become accusatory. After all, these are your top performers. You don’t want to alienate them. Have you been there? I certainly have.
So, why would top performers cover for those who are struggling, detached, or perhaps angry that they didn’t get the promotion? Several reasons. First, they may have some compassion for these poor performers. After all, we have all struggled at times. Second, sometimes it’s just easier to fix the problem than taking the time and energy to correct the behavior. Third, they don’t want to tangle with the person who’s figured out how to do the minimum and get away with it. Nobody enjoys confrontation and it may be difficult if that person doesn’t report to them. You can probably think of a couple more reasons. Any one of these might be acceptable on occasion. But when these behaviors become a pattern, that’s a recipe for larger issues to arise.
So, how do you, as a leader, address these situations when they come up? And what can you do to prevent them? Let’s tackle these two questions one at a time. First, responding to the mistake, dropped ball, lack of follow through, or whatever issue you’re dealing with. This is best handled after the issue has been resolved. There’s no point in assessing responsibility while remedying the problem. That’s just a distraction. If it has become apparent that the issue was “enabled” by someone who looked the other way, then that needs to be addressed to stop it from happening again.
A phrase that I have found works effectively in these situations is, “Help me understand.” Chances are, the top performer has realized that he or she contributed to the problem by looking the other way or letting something slide. There’s no point in drilling down on the details. Instead, you might simply ask, “Help me understand what you think we can take away from what happened.” Changes are, they’ll admit to their role. If they don’t or attempt make an excuse, you might have to drill down a bit by asking, “If you had addressed this situation, what kind of time or resources or relationship might we have saved?” You might find that their intense focus on meeting a goal or expectation was a precipitating factor. If that is the case, then it is time to have a conversation about reasonable outcomes. Some high performers can become so focused on the outcome that they cut corners and that can hurt the overall endeavor.
Most top performers I’ve dealt with are fully aware of the impact of their actions because they have developed the emotional intelligence to read the situations and people around them. That’s how they became top performers. Once the point’s been made, move on. They got it. There’s no need to harp. They may feel like you’re insulting their intelligence.
So, how do you prevent these situations from happening in the first place. Truth is, you can’t totally. After all, you can’t keep an eye on everything. You’d never get anything else done. You have to rely on your team to perform without looking over their shoulders. Besides, that never goes well.
The key is to instill your top performers with the understanding that covering for those who are not performing can harm the overall effort. They probably know this. But in the heat of the moment, it can be tempting just to save someone’s butt or look the other way. I have been surprised at how many people have never been taught even the basic tactics of addressing wanting behavior. This includes many top performers. Don’t assume they know how.
Sure, they’re very good in their area of expertise. But in managing people? Sometimes not so much. Many times, it only takes a conversation or two to get a person on track. But those conversations have to take place. This is not the place to go into the details of how to do so, but there are ample resources online to help them learn this art. They may be reluctant for the reasons I mentioned before, but addressing wanting behavior is essential.
Staying on top of this is not a one-time conversation, but a topic that needs to be revisited regularly. If some of your top performers are in supervisory roles, it is up to you, as their leader to remind them about this element of supervision.
Now, how about if your top performers are individual contributors, such as a key engineer or a top salesperson? Well, the calculus is somewhat different. These individuals may have less incentive to correct the behavior of lagging performers. After all, if covering for someone or fixing a mistake themselves is more efficient, they may be more likely to take that path just to stay on track. The challenge, of course, is keeping them invested in the overall effort.
You may have a top engineer who simply corrects the mistakes of others because it is just easier than working with them to improve performance. While this might work in the short term, what impact will it have over time? Perhaps your top salesperson always steps in on important meetings rather than taking time to prep less experienced people on how to handle the critical relationships. When these practices become apparent, it is your responsibility, as a leader to address them. If you don’t, you will end up with people who lag in their performance for the long term. Think of the expense of that!
Consider the top performers you have on your team. How can you ensure that those in supervisory roles are staying on top of those needing help or correction? At the same time, how can you ensure that those working as individual contributors refrain from allowing less-than-adequate performers to lag? Vigilance on your part is essential. This will ensure that top performers remain top performers, not just for themselves, but for the entire organization.
What do you do to ensure these challenges don’t arise in your firm? We’d all like to know. Add your ideas to the comments below and make sure to subscribe to this channel for other practical insights just like these.