Help please on this matter.?

Question

I'm the coordinator at this site where I work. I admit things aren't perfect around there. But I feel kinda bad because this employee is ALWAYS going over my head. I don't know what to do and its making me feel aweful.
She Emails: My boss, She calls My boss, She complains My boss. but she doesn't come to me.
How can I deal with this help please.

Answer 1

I believe that being straightforward is always best. I would approach the employee and explain to them that you are the coordinator on the project, and that you would appreciate her following the chain of command. Your boss should certainly be reinforcing this and redirecting this employee back to you, but it would appear that there is a disconnect there....

My caution to you is that you maintain professionalism and not bring others into this discussion. Sadly, when two women have a disagreement at work, it is labelled as a catfight. You don't want to go to your boss about this, as it will seem as though you are whining, and can't solve the problem on your own.

Good luck...

Answer 2

I am assuming you have already addresses this issue with your employee to no avail. If not you need to address it with her first, and give her an opportunity to change her behavior. If you have done this already I think it is time to respectfully go to your boss about it. Explain to him or her that an important part of building a cohesive team (as well as a morale building), is that upper and middle management appear to be on the same page so to speak. In other words you can not override each other, second guess each other, or undermine each other. Management must appear to be a team, and working towards a common goal. Which means that your boss should not entertain any conversation with this employee until she addresses her issues with you. Your boss can very respectfully show concern while at the same time direct her back to you for resolution or answers to her problems (especially if your boss is very far removed from your site). You need to get your boss to see that while he may think he or she is trying to help you or this girl he is actually driving a wedge between the two of you, and eventually possibly between you, your peers and the boss. By your boss not letting her know that she is following an inappropriate chain of command or method for discussing her grievances he or she is in fact perpetuating the problem of her constantly going to him and bypassing you. In this situation the absence of feedback is unintentional feedback for her to continue the behavior. I would also point out to him, that it wont be long before other staff members in both of your departments/divisions/ sites will catch wind of this and perhaps further undermine you or your boss. Through what is known as horizontal feedback or "the grape vine".

I would caution your self to be very diplomatic and professional when addressing this with your boss. Try to keep your discussion with him or her on a global level (meaning its effects on the entire company, division, department, location, etc.) This way it will not appear to be petty, or a battle between you the boss and this girl. Also you may even get some props for thinking outside your realm. If your boss is worth his weight he/she will agree with the issues that you have identified, and consider your request. However, in the meantime, I would mind your P's and Q's. Bringing this to light, may open yourself up to scrutiny. Good Luck! and remember don't compromise your values and your work ethics, and you will do well!

Answer 3

You need to get your boss on your side and have your boss re-direct this employee back to you. Once your boss agrees with this strategy try it out and see how it goes. If that doesn't work, pull HR in and ask for some help in re-establishing the chain of command. Hopefully your boss will be the first and last solution instead of undermining your authority with your subordinate. Not sure if you already tried a one on one with this person? I'm working on the assumption this person reports to you.

Answer 4

Well, If you and your boss are on the same page and you are the one in charge. Comfront the person and let him/her know you are the one to contact. If this person is not following procedure and not doing his/her job then you can always follow prcedure and give verbal, write ups and if necesary fire him/her.

If control is all you need, just make sure everybody is in the same page. Make sure you tell him/her you are the person to lead and if she/him is not happy they can always find another job. But make sure your boss backs you up and are always on the same page. If he/she does not back you up you are bound to have problems......so please have a meeting with your boss and once he/she is on the same page, let everyone else know you are the leader on a tactful way......After that start your game and don't sink to their levels to fight like a child and do give advice in a proper way and follow the verbal and write ups as needed. Most people will play games to test you if you are new or they were your friends before getting the position or if they wanted the position and they didn't get it..........remember you got it fair and square and were pick over anyone else for a reason....now don't mess it up because they don't know how to listen!!!

Good luck!!

Answer 5

First deal with your other employees, call a meeting and express you concerns to everyone regarding chain of command. Then contact your boss advising him about your situation and your desire to, depending on how good your problem child is, discipline and/or remove your problem. It's hard to dismiss someone if you've never done it before. If you "kinda feel bad" then you're not a good coordinator. It may be hard for you, but it is necessary to make an example out of her, to prevent others who may try the same tactic.

However if she is that good and you desperately need her, then step down and let her take your job. Good Luck.

Answer 6

unless your boss is encouraging her....

your boss doesn't want to hear about your problems
handling an underling

wait...is this person just a co-worker
and not someone on your staff?

if so, don't worry about it

if this woman is part of your staff
you have to meet w/her....in private
just tell her that, for efficiency, a chain-of-command has been created to expedite day-to-day issues
and you're sure that you'll be able to help her w/everything she needs much quicker if she'll come to you
and then, if she feels things aren't working out,
you'll be happy to forward her issues to YOUR boss
...as you were instructed

try to see her point of view

WHY is she going over your head

have you failed to help her
in a work-related matter

does she need more challenging tasks
to stay engaged and motivated

it's just a job
be human
...after all, she's just another human,
trying to earn a paycheck

g'luck

Answer 7

Its time to reestablish who's the silverback there, since I don't know your company procedures (and you should), put her in her place. (a note of caution), she may be sleeping with the boss this is why she has access to him without being redirected, so evaluate the situation, then move aggressively or carefully, if she's outing your boss he may wish to get rid of her, but if he doesn't care and everyone is aware of the goings on then look out for your job. But yeah shes after your job. I would confront her about the importance of using her chain of command (in writing) then get her for breaking the chain, shes seriously making you look bad to your boss.

Answer 8

confront her about it. directly ask her why she is doing this and why she has not been direct with you.

if she needs to know more to understand, tell her it bothers/ offends/ saddens you that she has so many issues with you but won't let you know, as letting you know could improve your awareness so you could think of altering the behavior she keeps narking to your boss about. if you think that she may be afraid of hurting your feelings... try to assure her you would try to limit reaction to her criticism. sometimes, when people say hard things to me, i try to balance how much i value their honesty vs. my anger about what they have to say- usually, i prefer the honesty. if i don't prefer the honesty... that has been when i began to realize i truly didn't like the person. being honest is being vulnerable, partially, because other people don't nessicarily have to respond in an honest way to honesty.

i admit that i have spoken to people's superiors before speaking to them, before... when i was 13, actually. it's a cowardly behavior. she may be afraid of directly confronting you. by confronting her, you would be showing that you are stronger.

is your boss confronting you for the employee? if so, next time, if it happens again, if this matches your personality, let your boss know how much you value the imput on your performance.

Answer 9

You've got a leadership problem. Either confront the employee or confront the boss and tell her about the problem. Either way, your going to need to take action sooner or later.

Answer 10

Everyone is telling you the same great advice. If your superior does not support you, and end that situation, it just get worse. Believe me, it is not anything you are doing, This person IS after your position and will stop at nothing to get it, so if your superior does not stop it, and you cannot talk to her and make her see that what she is doing is wrong....get another job before you begin to doubt your own abilities.