Riding Herd on Rebellious Employees

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Dear Stanley,

I manage a team of seven and each one is good in his or her own way. One of the members is very brainy but never respects my ideas and thoughts as a leader. He tends to follow his own rules, thereby impacting other members’ behavior towards me. Although work is so far running smoothly, I wish to take control of this situation and ensure that things continue to run smoothly. Could you give me some do’s and don’ts to deal with such picky members on the team and avoid any ugly scenarios?

Signed,

Challenged

Dear Nervous Boss,

You don’t mention whether the guy’s ideas are any good. If they are, there is one set of do’s. If they’re not, there’s another. In the latter case, you have a person that does things another way because he’s a butthead and disrespectful to your authority. The way he operates is in no way better, it’s just his way, and that’s that. I would suggest, in that case, that you DO sit him down and tell him to follow operating procedures or you will toss him out the window. You may also tell him that his obvious lack of respect for you gets on your nerves, and if he doesn’t shape up in that regard, he will find his socks on fire. There. Your problems are solved.

If, on the other hand, this person is smart and generally has a lot going on, you’ve got a more subtle issue to address. I suspect that this is the case, because if he was a loser you’d have mentioned that. What you’ve got here, then, is an intelligent, slightly rebellious employee that has a problem with authority but still does a good job. Talented people are very often less than observant about the niceties, particularly when it comes to authority figures. You don’t want to smother the more creative people just because they take a bit more tending. So DO listen to the guy, and watch the way he does things. Then steal all his ideas and take the credit for them yourself. See? You’re a manager!

You might also find it advisable to sit this person down and have a different kind of talk. Tell him you value his ideas, that you like having somebody so sharp and pro-active in your department. But you don’t like it when he challenges you in front of the troops. Tell him you don’t want to have to squash his creativity — or his face. But that you will insist that he not be snarky, negative, or haughty about you in front of the kids. If he has a problem or an innovative thought, your door is open and you expect to see him in your guest chair anytime. But again: He’d be advised not to piss you off. You don’t need to be more specific than that. You might also say that creative, innovative, thoughtful people with an edge make great managers after their edges wear off a bit. So perhaps he should watch his edges and keep in mind that you make a better friend than an enemy.

Bottom line: rebellious types need management just like everybody else. Even more, actually. But DO keep it private. And DON’T stop being the boss just because you’ve got a stallion to ride now and then.