No matter where you work or what the job is as a supervisor you will at some point have to handle an angry employee. Learning this skill can be difficult and does take some practice. As a matter of nature if someone is angry at us then we have an inherent tendency to become angry with them. When this occurs it is generally a no win situation and nothing gets achieved. Handling an angry employee takes some skill and the right techniques can diffuse the situation.
Delaying handling the angry employee has a tendency to make the situation worse in the majority of cases. There are exceptions to this such as when both parties are angry and there is no going forward or resolving the issues at hand. When this occurs it is generally better to give each person a little space to rethink their approach on the topic or problem at hand. The ticket here is to not let it sit for so long that instead of rethinking each person continues to build their anger until it becomes irresolvable. Set a specific time that you will meet and work through the issue at hand.
In the majority of the cases when handling angry employees action should be taken at the time that the issues occur. Anger issues tend to be destructive to the company when not dealt with effectively and quickly. Anger can grow and become a much bigger problem when not dealt. By dealing with it quickly as a leader you demonstrate that you are concerned and that you value the employee’s perception of the situation. This is important to growing a great team of employees.
Handling employee anger will also depend on where the interaction occurs. In most cases it is best to deal with the issue in private. There are times when this is impossible and it must be dealt with now rather than later. When this happens remain calm and ask the employee if they would rather deal with this in private.
Handling an angry employee can be difficult but by using positive techniques, dealing with the issues quickly and allowing the employee to verbalize their position can help to diffuse the situation. When different people work together you will invariably have some issues. Learning to work through these is what makes an excellent team because each person brings something unique to the team.