one of my staff has a bad breath. she work at the front desk and communicate with customer closely on daily basis. I am worry that we're gonna loose customer because of this issue.
2007-10-04 18:51:06 · 8 answers · asked by mulsurja 1 in Society & Culture ➔ Etiquette
Bad breath and body odor are real problems. Embarrassing as it is, it is a supervisors job to deal with issues like this. I have done it in a friendly and low-key manner while in a private meeting. No long lectures, emotional jabs, or judgments: Short and sweet and friendly. One employee really didn't know how to deal with a hygiene problem and I gave him some helpful suggestions. He was glad I had helped and his hygiene improved tremendously.
2007-10-04 19:55:12 · answer #1 · answered by GENE 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋
I agree with Betty Boo, regularly offer her mints & gum. Unless she's slow she'll probably get the hint. In case she doesn't take the hint remember we need 5 complements for every insult. First compliment the good things about her. You could try normalizing the behavior: we can all have bad breath after eating.
Another tactic is to not make it personal. Let her know that you'd like all employees whom work closely with customers to use mints so it will improve customer relations. I'm a prayer partner at church and the team leaders offer us all gum/mints and it's accepted as standard. No one gets offended or takes it personally.
And you can write off the mints as tax deductible! :)
2007-10-05 02:07:28 · answer #2 · answered by Precious 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Provide breath mints, gum, fresheners often and freely. I hope your staff speaks good English at least. People will step back to avoid halitosis and what's most important is that they get the information they need. I would be more concerned for the health issues of why the staff member has bad breath and give her directions to a nutrional consultant who might be able to assist with the problem or a doctor who could diagnose the root problem. A dentist might be able to assist as well. Refer to the article link below.
2007-10-05 02:06:34 · answer #3 · answered by Lovin' Mary's Lamb 4 · 0⤊ 1⤋
There really is no way to tell someone that their breath stinks politely.
I would just offer her a piece of gum every time I saw her; I would insist that she take a piece. I would do this until she got the point.
Maybe you could stage a play where a fake customer comes in and says to her, "Damn ho, you need some Listerine!!" Make sure this actor is believable.
2007-10-05 01:58:22 · answer #4 · answered by baller4billions 2 · 0⤊ 2⤋
You can take 2 packets of mint with you and eat one and offer the other one to your staff. 95% of the time people dont refuse mint. Try it.
2007-10-05 02:00:30 · answer #5 · answered by shail422 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Leave her an anonymous note on her desk written so she can't tell who it was of course. She'll get the hint without being ashamed in front of anyone.
2007-10-08 23:47:57 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
I've encountered such issue when I was working in my previous office. What I did was, I just offered him any mints every now and then. After a while he just realised himself and he will have his own mints in his pocket all the time... ;)
2007-10-05 01:57:44 · answer #7 · answered by betty boo 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
my secretary had bad breath.. and what i did was leave a bottle of mouth wash on her desk before she came in to work..
that way she got the message without being embarrassed
2007-10-05 02:00:39 · answer #8 · answered by pokerfaces55 5 · 1⤊ 1⤋