A disruptive team member can be more than an annoyance. He or she can also affect the quality of your work.
Anything that makes your work environment “toxic” can lead to a decrease in productivity because employees won’t want to be there, says Cissy Pau, principal consultant of Clear HR Consulting Inc. in Vancouver.
Disruptive behaviour can take the form of profanity, an aggressive or argumentative attitude in meetings, loud phone conversations, the telling of offensive jokes — or any other actions that distract or annoy other team members and interfere with business activities.
There are generally five reasons why a person would become disruptive at work, says Joshua Zuchter, a business and life coach in Toronto. They are: a lack of understanding about how the office runs; a desire to gain attention or recognition; a lack of proper training; or dissatisfaction.
Pau and Zuchter offer these tips to help you deal with disruptive behaviour in the office:
> Identify the source of the problem
Take a moment to think about whether the person’s behaviour is really that inappropriate. Perhaps you are being too sensitive. Is this just one of those irritating habits you’re going to have to live with if you work with other people?
“We all find some people annoying,” Zuchter says. “Take charge of yourself and work through the issues that are affecting you.”
> Don’t put it off
If the team member is indeed the problem, speak to him or her about it right away. It will be harder to make changes or address the issue if you let the behaviour continue. Letting people get away with inappropriate behaviour once will imply that it is acceptable, Zuchter says. “Be really clear about letting others know that it’s not OK.”
> Talk to them
Speak to the team member in person, giving specific examples of what they are doing and how it affects you, Pau says. “You need to say, ‘Look, when you do this, this is how it effects me.’ That is typical conflict-resolution style.”
Keep the conversation casual and private. Invite the team member out for coffee, or to step into a conference room, she says.
Avoid discussing the problem via email with the offending team member. And don’t gossip with other co-workers to deal with your frustration, Pau warns.
> Bringing in the boss
If the team member continues to be a disruption after the casual conversation, you may need to formalize your complaint. Bring it to the attention of the appropriate manager, says Pau. Be careful to identify who the best person would be. If several managers become involved it could become too big an issue.
Says Pau: “You don’t want eight people involved with a dispute between two people.”
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This is the first in a two-part series. Next: Dealing with the problem as a manager