Hi
Does anyone have any tips on how to react to or deal with people who agree to an action with a deadline but never deliver the action on time. This person always has to be chased several times.
I am fairly new to the organisation but I have been told this person has a very bad reputation for this kind of thing and so has been placed in a job where they don't have too much responsibility.
This problem aside they are actually a pleasant person.
We have a team meeting in 2 days and I am pretty certain this person has not done what they have said they will do in readiness for the meeting, and I I am trying to think of different ways to manage the problem. Saving Changes...
Are your meetings formal or informal! if your meetings are formal with agenda and minute taking including actions assigned this person has no excuse. As we know we go through the last set of minutes of the meeting and we also go through the actions list - when this person fails again to deliver and actively contribute why is he there in the first place, this is my first question. By not delivering it is negative and does not aid progress, if you just can't get a commitment from them is it because they lack the knowledge, skills and is actually doing nothing cause they are afraid to speak out or is it because it is not their responsibility ?
If they are responsible then he or she is failing the team\department and must be addressed in a formal way but one to one - give them one more opportunity to air their worries\concern to you and do provide support, see what happens!
If no go with this person, you are wasting valuable time, replace them and speak with their Manager above you !
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Anonymous
Yes, Ithink this kind of thing can happen very often - if you've not kept a log of everything in black and white, is there any saving grace for the PM? Saving Changes...
Anonymous
Thanks for your comments.
The meeting is now history and the person concerned DID deliver on what they promised to do and contributed well to the meeting.
I think it may have helped that I did document everything including meeting notes and action items from the last meeting.
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Glad it has worked out for you. It never fails, when meetings are documented with agendas and actions assigned to individuals they must deliver otherwise they will have egg on their face and loose respect from the other key players. Saving Changes...
Bruce LoflandSoftware Developer| SprintLenexa, Ks, United States
There are lots of reason why people do not get things done, some of which are not obvious. I wrote a blog post about that here: Hidden Reasons Why Things Don't Get Done
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Sylvie EdwardsProfessor/Program coordinator| Durham College (DC)Whitby, Ontario, Canada
Well similar to what some of the other "nice folk" have said earlier trying to understand the reason behind the behaviour is always on the top of my list. If that fails, I try to make the behaviour change by associated the results needed to a penalty or reward.
Some people don't work any other way... Saving Changes...
Mitch KraytonPresident| Krayton SeminarsDenver, Co, United States
Some people are forgetful, some people are inept, some people are spiteful.
As the person managing and expecting a result, the easiest thing to do is reduce each commitment to a memo and have you and the other party sign it. A written agreement has more weight than a verbal one.
Should this be a chronic condition that warrants remedial or disciplinary action, you will have a written record to support your action. Saving Changes...
