Speak softly and carry a big stick: when new hires come aboard or disciplinary issues arise, managers should be firm and respectful to achieve the best results - Management Tools: Supervisor Resources

HR Magazine, Jan, 2003 by Jathan W. Janove

During his term as governor of New York, Theodore Roosevelt endured a protracted political battle with party bosses. He eventually emerged victorious. In a letter to a friend, he attributed his success to a West African proverb that teaches: "Speak softly and carry a big stick; you will go far." Roosevelt continued to apply this proverb while president of the United States in politics, nation building and international conflict.

Let's apply it in the workplace.

In the employer-employee context, "speaking softly" means expressing management's expectations of employees in a manner that respects their dignity and keeps the supervisor's own ego in check. The "big stick" symbolizes the supervisor's commitment to results. Both elements are necessary. Without the speech, employees will lack direction. Without the big stick, employees will not understand the necessity of obtaining the desired results and will confuse soft speech with a soft will. The following scenarios illustrate this principle:

Getting Started With a New Employee

All too often, employees are left to their own devices in carving out a path to success or failure with their new employers. They receive a general orientation on company policy, procedure and practices. As for crucial performance and behavioral expectations that will determine their future, however, management is largely silent--at least until problems arise.

Conversely, some companies induct new hires into a form of boot camp in which employees are drilled on the rules and warned of dire potential consequences should they fail to do the do's or succeed in doing the don'ts.

Both approaches create unnecessary problems and lost opportunities. In the first approach, where there is neither "voice" nor "stick," some new hires will nevertheless manage to stumble forward toward success and figure out the path on their own. However, many employees will miss out on success, not because they lacked ability, but because they needed clearer direction as to the desired path and importance of taking it.

In the second approach, where the voice booms, the tendency for new hires will be to keep their heads down-go along, get along and don't stick your neck out. This approach will cost employers that discretionary energy that employees offer if they are properly motivated. It's this energy that leads employees to take risks on behalf of the company, to show initiative and to volunteer ideas that help the employer exploit valuable opportunities or avoid costly mistakes.

Applying Roosevelt's soft voice and big stick method avoids the pitfalls of the two approaches described above. Using this approach, the supervisor explains to the new hire precisely what is expected (the voice), expresses the consequences attached to these expectations (the stick), but does so with a straightforward, ego-free demeanor that respects the new hire's dignity (the softness" of the voice). In this way, the supervisor expresses optimism about the new employment relationship while at the same time outlining what is necessary for that optimism to be validated:

"We hired you, Jim, because we feel you have high potential and there is a good fit between your abilities and skills and our needs for your position. Now to be successful, the following things are critical: [insert performance and conduct expectations]."

The soft voice/big stick approach is especially useful for companies that use initial employment review periods to scrutinize new hires to determine whether the employment fit is right. Although many companies espouse such policies, few actually use them. The few that do, and make it a priority for managers and supervisors to make early evaluations and nip hiring mistakes in the bud, report great success.

For such employers, the soft voice/big stick message is along the following lines: "Sally, as we explained in the handbook, our company follows the 'at-will' rule of employment throughout an employee's term with the company. However, we take an especially close look at the first 60 days of employment to assess whether the fit is right with the new hire and the position be or she has filled. If we determine that the fit is not right, this does not mean we think you are a bad or incompetent employee; it simply means that despite our efforts during the hiring stage, we probably made a mistake in the fit-to-job assessment. Now, during this 60-day period, and thereafter, we will be paying particular attention to the following things: [insert performance and conduct expectations]."

As one can readily see, there is no question about the "big stick." Yet, the voice is still soft-spoken and fully respects the dignity of the new employee. Without being domineering or demeaning, the supervisor has conveyed a clear message as to what is expected and the consequences for failure to meet expectations. Such an approach gives both parties the best chance at achieving a successful fit between employee and position.

Dealing with the Problem Employee

When a problem does arise, there is perhaps no better use of the soft voice/big stick approach. Consider the following hypothetical: