…and his company the expense of replacing an experienced (but troublesome) employee who possessed crucial skills and knowledge.
A regional manufacturer requested we develop a customized training program for one of their plants. There was nothing unusual about that; it happens all the time. The list of desired topics, however, was a little strange – especially in aggregate.
For a group of team leaders and first-line supervisors, they wanted lessons in project management, critical thinking, problem solving, team building, and diversity appreciation – lots of diversity appreciation, and it should all be delivered in eight hours or less.
We advised that was too much to cover in eight hours, but the client was persistent. We work hard at meeting expectations, so we got to work.
The request had telltale signs of an employer trying to correct bad behavior. We watched for the problem child (or children) to no avail. The group was diverse in age, race, and gender. Everyone seemed relaxed, at ease, and worked well together on our physical and mental challenges designed to facilitate teamwork.
After a jam-packed day, we left puzzled because none of us could identify the “bad actor(s)” and we all had plenty of experience in ferreting them out.
Our feedback was overwhelmingly positive, both from the participants and the corporate client, so we assumed we’d accomplished their goals.
About three months later, the same client called for an EMERGENCY session for ONE client. It HAD to be conducted off-site, on a Saturday, and last all day. Finally! The problem child was soon to be revealed, along with the unspoken goal from the beginning.
At the appointed time and place, Joe appeared. He’d been part of the earlier group and hadn’t stood out in any material way. He was an older white male and most decidedly didn’t want to spend his day off with us.
No judgement here, just a description. Joe was a veteran (US Army), enjoyed Fox News, was an evangelical, and was as set in his ways as an old oak tree. He didn’t WANT to change and challenged us to make him.
Our team rose to the challenge and pulled out all the stops. We used lecture, discussion, role play, experiential activities – and nothing worked. Both student and instructors were getting increasingly frustrated as the day passed.
Joe continued to spout (perhaps for effect or challenge) hateful rhetoric and uttered forbidden phrases and comments best left for the sanctity of one’s own home. We were failing – miserably. This was new to us and we didn’t like it, so we got creative.
We took Joe to dinner at one of Macon, Georgia’s most popular soul food restaurants and forbade him from speaking to anyone but us. He was to only observe our interchange with staff and patrons. Our instructors showed what acceptable interactions looked like.
Afterwards, we debriefed in a cold, dark parking lot in downtown Macon and quizzed Joe. He passed, although the hour and the location may have lent a sense of urgency.
We closed with a word to the wise: “Today’s emergency session for just you cost your company more than the previous session for you and two dozen of your coworkers. Your company is obviously trying to salvage you, but they have obligations to their other employees. What do you think will happen if they don’t see a change?”
Joe thought for a minute and said, “I guess they’ll let me go. In fact, I’m sure of it. I can now see signs I’ve been missing.”
We all shook hands and parted after a long, hard day. I checked up on Joe about a year later. He was still with the company, so our mission was accomplished.
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