For most employers, dealing with difficult employees is almost inevitable. Since employees are human, they can occasionally demonstrate inappropriate or undesirable behavior, which must be addressed sooner or later. The stakes are simply too high to ignore these behaviors or pretend they don’t exist.

Why? Think about the repercussions of having one or more difficult employees in your workforce.

A problem employee can cause serious damage to your brand.

When a customer walks away unhappy with their treatment, “this makes them associate poor service and bad quality with the brand,” notes Great People Inside. A “damaged reputation takes years to bounce back from and in some extreme cases, it is irreversible.”

A difficult employee can negatively impact morale in the workplace.

An individual with a poor work ethic, a negative outlook; someone who is a chronic complainer. These employees can sap the initiative of others around them. “This toxicity can impact your entire team,” according to AllBusiness, “and if this difficult employee recruits like-minded employees, the poison can spread and infect your business.” This, in turn, can lead to “performance issues, service concerns, product defects, and potential legal action” if and when wrongdoing occurs. In a worst-case scenario, this problem employee triggers an exodus of valued workers from an organization.

A difficult employee disrupts workflow and productivity.

Any employee who causes a disruption or otherwise impedes the flow of work can also inflict significant harm on the organization. Such employees demand “special treatment” from managers or HR. This results in a loss of time and resources. The longer the disruption goes on, the greater the potential damage to both the business and its brand.

Take action to fix the problem

One or more difficult employees in the workplace represents a potentially serious threat to the company’s well-being. That’s why it’s important to take action, including the following:

1. Don’t let the situation fester.

Sometimes owners or managers know a problem exists with a particular employee, but either ignore it or just pretend it doesn’t exist. This might be the worst strategy to employ under the circumstances. Bad behavior rarely goes away on its own. If it’s allowed to fester, it’s almost certain to spread to other employees as well.

2. Address behaviors, not personality.

When it becomes clear that something’s wrong, have a private conversation with the employee and objectively review the situation. The focus should be on specific examples of undesirable behavior, not an indictment of the individual themselves. Sometimes a problem employee isn’t conscious of their actions negatively affecting others. Describe what he or she is doing wrong in a professional way. Don’t criticize their character. This is more likely to generate revised and improved behavior.

3. Be sensitive about the timing of your actions.

Finding the best moment to talk with the problem employee is important. As Talent Gear notes, an employee who is “currently highly emotional, vulnerable or otherwise unlikely to be able to hear and understand your concerns” probably won’t be moved by your intervention. In the same respect, “if you are too angry to have a calm discussion or to show any patience,” it’s best not to have the conversation at that time.

4. Provide focused coaching.

Look for ways to provide ongoing, structured coaching. Suggest more acceptable modes of behavior and allow time for the employee to adopt these suggestions. Also, be sure to document all encounters with the employee. It’s crucial to establish a history of your interactions, the offer to coach and repair any damage done thus far and other actions you or the employee take. Not only does this “paper trail” help to keep everyone on the same page, it may prove essential if and when any legal action occurs as a result of the difficult employee’s behavior.

5. Make the decision to terminate employment.

When all is said and done, there may be times when the best course of action is letting the problem employee go. It’s never ideal to have to terminate an individual’s employment, but putting it off only makes matters worse. As business owner Gene Marks notes on Small Biz Ahead, “in the instances where I did let someone go … I looked back months later and kicked myself that I hadn’t made the move a long time before I did.” Delays “not only caused more problems in the office, but also I wasn’t showing my existing employees the respect they deserve.”

Small business owners encounter many challenges, but having a difficult employee in their ranks is one challenge they must address directly and overcome. The health and well-being of the business depends on it.

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Employee leadership is considered one of the most promising aspects of human resources and training within organizations. After all, leaders have to come from somewhere!

There are obvious benefits to building up leaders from within:

• They have a deeper understanding of the company’s mission than a new hire from “outside.”
• They will work hard to justify the company’s faith in promoting them to leadership positions.
• Workforce morale overall rises when employees see “one of their own” moving ahead. (It could happen to them, too.)
• The organization itself benefits from promoting a motivated, talented, and experienced employee.

Given these favorable outcomes, what can you do to recognize, encourage, and reward employee leadership?

Learn to identify potential leaders.

Part of the leadership cultivation process is keeping an eye out for the most promising candidates within the organization. Generally speaking, such individuals won’t be hard to miss. They display genuine enthusiasm for their job responsibilities, frequently go above and beyond, and are more than willing to assist co-workers with important tasks.

But it’s important to watch for other key signs. At company meetings, for example, see which employees contribute the most and come up with the most striking, out-of-the-box ideas. Consider inviting these individuals to sit in on a higher-level meeting. Encourage them to take part, contributing ideas and insights based on their professional experience.

Ask the right questions.

Savvy business owners also take time to identify a potential leader’s ambitions and needs. They ask probing, foward-looking questions like:

• Are there other positions in the organization you’d like to explore?
• What skills do you possess that you feel aren’t being utilized by our company?
• Which current skill would you like to improve?
• Are there new skills you’d like to develop?

The answers you receive will prove to be a helpful guide as you oversee the individual’s progress towards leadership.

Look for alignment with your company’s vision.

Employees who “get” the organization’s vision and mission statement are often the most promising leadership candidates. It’s up to you and your executive team to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to understand this vision (and feels comfortable asking questions to gain a deeper understanding).

This alignment “gives [employees] ownership of what they create and helps them support organizational causes with more purpose,” notes Inc.

Offer training opportunities and mentorship.

Budding leaders often learn most when they have access to training and development opportunities (classes, webinars, conferences, etc.). Since the cost and time-commitment of formal training can be daunting, offer to foot the bill for work-related development opportunities and invite employees to take part.

Employees can benefit hugely from working with mentors, too. LMBC, a professional services solutions provider, suggests enlisting “older generation leaders” to act as mentors and role models to employees. This experience “will help future leaders learn the ropes more quickly and form good habits from leading others.”

Give potential leaders challenging assignments.

Ambitious employees often want to test themselves and build their portfolio of talents.  However, this is only possible if the organization enables them to tackle a challenging project or initiative–even if the end-result isn’t “perfect.”

One option is appointing them to manage a small group of fellow employees on a special project. In addition, you can invite them to appoint a team of their own to brainstorm solutions to nagging organizational and/or customer service issues.

The key, says Forbes, is letting the potential leader struggle, if necessary. No one is saying you must “force prospective leaders to swim or die,” and you or a manager should pitch in if things get too difficult. Most important, you should be sure to refrain from rushing “to their aid at the first sign of danger,” because it’s more desirable that they “make their own decisions and find their own solutions.”

Reward performance and initiative.

As you work to promote employee leadership, always remember to provide tangible rewards. For example, don’t hesitate to praise the employee in public or through company-wide communications. In addition, you should include performance objectives and achievements in the employee’s annual or semi-annual evaluations and congratulate them for their efforts. Offer personalized guidance or advice, when necessary, and always in an upbeat fashion.

With the right level of support and training, you can develop the next generation of leaders within your organization. Think of the time and resources you’ll save by not having to look beyond your company walls and not having to rely upon “outside” candidates to fill leadership positions.

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