Besieged By Questions? Encourage Staff To Self-Manage

Folio: The Magazine for Magazine Management, April, 2001

Managers are often confronted with so many problems from their staff, they can't get their own work done. Joy Baldridge of Baldridge Seminars International says you need to keep problems in perspective: Is it a train wreck or just burnt toast? Speaking at an MPA seminar titled "Coaching for Improved Staff Performance," Baldridge said relatively minor problems needn't dominate your time--or even reach your office--if staffers are taught to follow the "Stop, Think and Ask" procedure for problem-solving.

This is how it works: First, the person states the problem to himself. Next, he or she comes up with and prioritizes three possible ways to deal with it. "A lot of times, the answer lies within them, but they don't even know it," Baldridge said. If the person still can't decide on a course of action, he or she should bring the problem and possible solutions to you. Then you help the person make the right choice from the list of options. A crisis is an exception to this path--it should always be brought to the at tention of the manager immediately. Unfortunately, some employees may not know the difference between a crisis and a brush fire, but you can teach them. Have them write down their idea of a crisis, and then offer your own definition. This problem-solving procedure is all part of the "give-and-get" philosophy of management: I'll help you with your problem as long as I get some possible solutions from you. "The ultimate goal is to get employees to self-manage," Baldridge said. "Then you have to rein them in and guide them."