Conducting Tough Employee Conversations - Five Keys to Doing Them Right

If you're a manager, you must be prepared to have tough, even uncomfortable conversations with employees. It goes with the territory. But too many managers practice avoidance, usually because they lack the skills to handle confrontation. The result: problems fester and the manager's credibility suffers.

If your company has a lot of managers who haven't been trained to handle challenging situations, it's no doubt hurting your productivity, morale and overall financial performance.

It doesn't have to be this way. Tools exist that can make these tough conversations happen sooner, go more smoothly, and produce better outcomes. And the good news is that they're easy to learn and can be deployed immediately.

Learning Objectives:

• Avoid the three biggest mistakes managers make when engaged in a tough conversation.
• Understand what beliefs and assumptions get in the way "in the heat of the moment" .
• Be prepared to handle predictable objections from employees.
• Deal with "hotheads" who respond emotionally.
• Communicate more clearly, and dramatically reduce misinterpretations.
• Develop active listening skills that pave the way for dialogue rather than disagreement.
• Master assertiveness skills that help us express our thoughts and requests honestly and directly.

Presented By:

Amy Henderson
CEO
Henderson Training, Inc.

AMY HENDERSON is CEO of Henderson Training, Inc., in Santa Clarita, CA. Since 1991 she has logged in thousands of classroom hours training employees nationwide in a wide variety of industries including banking, insurance, construction, hospitality, retail, high tech and the military.

Continuing Education:

• This program has been approved for 1.0 recertification credit hour toward PHR and SPHR recertification through the Human Resource Certification Institute (HRCI). Please note: HRCI credit is earned only by attending the live conference. For more information about certification or recertification, please visit the HRCI homepage at www.hrci.orgthe HRCI homepage.