The Matrix, Part DO

I recently spoke to an old friend of mine who manages a group of people in a professional office setting.  Although she is the office leader, there are company employees residing in that office who do not report to her.  Most individuals understand the delicate balance that exists and realize that everyone must carry a portion of the load for the entity to be successful.  Unfortunately for my friend, one critical piece of the puzzle hasn’t gotten that memo.  His failure and almost disdain for producing what is expected — or even close to what is expected — is jeopardizing office profitability.  A reduction in force may be necessary.  And — you guessed it, he does not report to her.

How do you deal with a poor or underperforming crucial element of your team’s success when you aren’t that person’s supervisor?  Some might suggest going immediately to his supervisor.  Others might suggest going immediately to your own supervisor.  My initial thoughts are to go directly to the source so that he understands what the problem is from my point-of-view.  Most likely he does in fact know my problem, but I want to be able to try diplomatic face-to-face discussions before bringing out the heavy hitters.  If he doesn’t understand the relationship of his efforts to my success, then this would be a chance for me to educate him.  If he becomes totally defensive or completely ignores my goodwill gesture, then he’s left me no choice but to go around him.  I’d start with my supervisor first before speaking with his.

You will probably run into a similar situation sometime during your managerial career.  Always remember that the success of your organization or team is the primary reason you were hired.

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