What to Do When You Inherit a Mess at Work

Overcoming an entrenched problem at work can be like trying to untangle a tight knot. It may be frustrating and seemingly impossible to undo. In addition to the main problem, there is likely a wake of damage to culture and morale. When you inherit a dysfunctional team For example, if the leader before you hired from their friends and family network while ignoring actual candidate qualifications, the team's performance probably suffered. Surrounding oneself with buddies or doing friends a favor by “giving them a job” is not a strategic way to build a department. Not only can it be difficult to critique and guide friends, but it also is a challenge to train people to do a job that maybe wasn't a fit in the first place. Inheriting this problematic situation may seem overwhelming, but in reality it could be an opportunity to overhaul and create a higher-performing organizational engine. While some of the team members may feel threatened when you take the lead, it also is likely others (non-friends and family who were hired strictly for their credentials) who have been swept up in the chaos of the situation will feel hopeful again, that someone is taking the helm and righting their ship. These types of embedded issues usually are laborious and time consuming to turn around. In fact, the saying “sometimes you have to slow down to speed up” applies here. Conducting an initial full assessment of each individual and individual role in your department is the likely first step. Those employees you deem capable of moving forward in their assigned roles to accomplish growth goals, should be mentored and coached and encouraged to remain through the transformation phase. This may include creating a 30-60-90 day written plan for milestones and objectives that both you and the employee agree upon. However, in other instances, you may see that the employee needs repositioned elsewhere or transitioned out of the organization altogether. Of course, you will want to consult HR and/or legal before implementing the actual process steps to do so. Factors to consider when repositioning an employee include when they were hired for a customer-facing role but are clearly uncomfortable and agitated working with people, or when you discover that the project manager overseeing a team of five is unable to direct other people's productivity goals. If someone simply is not a fit for your team, or any other team within the company, it may be time to part ways. If possible, offering a severance to include outplacement will ease the transition. By taking thoughtful and swift action to show you are going to turn the tide – that you are determined to transform this department from an under-performing drag on the company to a high-performing culture of team members qualified for their roles, you will see a ripple result. Not only will results in sales, customer acquisition, project completion and so forth occur, but morale also will improve. When you inherit a group of siloed and disconnected people In a second scenario, you may have inherited a fairly successful department or division, but were brought in at the outset of major organizational transformation, to which they wholly resist. Perhaps most of the contributors on your team are accustomed to operating independently, in silos. Maybe even the flames of competition were fanned between silos by former leadership. The bottom line is, you have a fractured group of people that you have been tasked to unify and lead through the storms of change. How do you begin? First, you appeal to the strongest and most vocal and/or charismatic performers and ask how you can help them achieve their next-level goal. Maybe they are seeking an expanded territory or higher compensation opportunities or even, a promotion that will result in management responsibilities. It is time to negotiate a win-win. By connecting with them first on their goals and assuring them, with specific, actionable steps, that you will help them get there, you forge trust. Then, you can go in for the ask – explain what it is that you need in order to be most successful in your new role as their leader. For example, perhaps a high-performing extrovert has influence over certain team members; you can strategize the best methods for them to help you rally a select group to gain initial buy-in to the new, more collaborative, shared environment of success. From there, begin expanding the community and reinforcing the value of shared information and goals. Create a rewards system for this new, more connected culture. Repeat the strategy a couple of more times, tapping key performers and influencers within your group to help draw in and unify others. Where you see strong resistance or unwillingness to comply, you may need to take measures to reposition or retire those individuals from your group. Continue to rinse and repeat this process of rebuilding, forging new links and paving pathways where once you only saw silos. You will eventually reveal a fully functioning, more interactive group willing to swap ideas, share in opportunities for growth and help turn the ship to align with the winds of change. Taking on a new leadership position? Follow these tips for creating a 30/60/90 plan.