Every foreman must occasionally deal with a troublesome crew member. Nobody’s perfect, and you’re smart to allow enough slack that your crew doesn’t feel that you’re always looking over everybody’s shoulder. But from time to time you’ll have a crew member who repeatedly causes problems or difficulties — and you’ll have to step in to set the situation right.
Some people seem unable to work effectively with other crew members; others fail to follow established safety rules or make mistakes that cause rework; still others are consistently late or absent from work. You might encounter a crew member who repeatedly challenges your position or tries to get under your skin. In extreme cases, a problem crew member may show hostility toward another crew member, toward you, or toward someone else on the jobsite.
How you deal with difficult crew members and convert them into team players will be a critical part of your job as a foreman. The suggestions on the next page will help you get started on the right foot when you encounter this special situation.
Handling a Problem Crew Member (PCM)
He’s just blown up again! Here are ten possible ways you could react to PCM, a crew member who is demanding, hostile, and disruptive.
Some of these approaches are effective; some are not and might even make the situation worse. Read thru the list and think about how you might handle the situation.
Remember, we are talking about your initial action, not an action that you might take later. Obviously, your initial action is only part of the process — it’s just the beginning. But your ability to handle a tough situation successfully is much improved if you get off to an effective start.
- Stay cool. Let PCM express his anger without an immediate reaction from you. Yes. You want to solve the problem, not win an argument. Listening may help you understand the cause of PCM’s behavior.
- Let PCM know that you consider him to be a problem. No. It’s not PCM himself that’s the problem, it’s what PCM does (or doesn’t do). You want to change PCM’s behavior, not PCM himself (or this discussion would be about his termination).
- Challenge PCM with a tough look and a firm response. No. There’s little to be gained by backing PCM into a corner — and there may be a lot to lose.
- Make some kind of a reminder note to yourself about what you did that caused the problem so you’re less likely to repeat this mistake.
It’s OK to make mistakes; it’s not OK to repeat them. Once is a mistake. 2 or 3x is a trend. 4x is a habit. The risk is too great, and construction is much too competitive to allow bad habits to linger on a jobsite. And there is much less slack — or none at all — if your trends and habits involve safety or quality.
Handling mistakes is a tough, new challenge — your personnel responsibilities are different, and nobody’s going to slow down the pace of the project just because you’re new to the job. But if you remember the ideas you’ve learned on this blog, you’ll make fewer “people mistakes” as you gain experience.
And when you do make a mistake, you’ll handle and recover from it more quickly and more effectively.
Here’s a Minor Mistake That People Often Make — But Nobody Ever Talks About It
“Hey — can you repeat that please. And slow down. You’re talking faster than I can listen. And it’s noisy here.”
They talk too fast — especially on the phone. Both on the jobsite and in the office, some people assume that fast talking signals intelligence, competence, or efficiency. But fast talking can lead to a message that’s incomplete or even wrong. At best, a fast-talking message must be repeated (inefficient). Often it’s lost (a broken connection) or the sender doesn’t clarify it, and the action that follows leads to a mistake that affects safety, quality, the budget, and/or the schedule. Then a “minor” mistake can lead to a major cost.
When delivering a message face-to-face — maintain constant eye contact. It will hold your listener’s attention, and you’ll get clues on whether your message has been clearly understood. .
Take the time to talk clearly and slowly enough that you’re certain the person on the other end gets the full and accurate message. Sometimes you may need to exaggerate your words or your diction — especially on the phone. Ask for playback on key points to confirm them — especially if you expect your message to prompt an action. If necessary, take the time to move to a quieter location.
Check out When Sending a Message, Always Confirm That the Receiver Actually Understands the Details of What You Just Said. When the conversation is finished, you want to be certain that you’ve resolved your “mistake”and all its related issues.
In the long run — over the duration of a project — the payoff from this kind of patience will exceed the extra minutes it requires. And your overall performance as a foreman will show that your crew has less rework, they make fewer mistakes, and your track record for avoiding lost-time accidents is among the best.
Stuff To Think About. Think back to the last time you made a “people mistake” — and write down how the five • points unfolded. If a similar situation came up again, how would you handle it differently?
