When a long-time client is late for her appointment, team members refuse to find a workaround. Instead, they tell her that she has to reschedule. Their seeming unwillingness to work with the situation leaves you peeved. Why won’t employees take charge when matters go sideways and solve problems?
Managers often lament that they are the only ones willing to take charge when things don’t go according to plan, but workers’ reluctance to problem solve may be as much of a leadership issue as a worker one. Let’s look at the benefits of problem-solving, challenge our long-held beliefs of why workers are reluctant to problem solve, and what we can do as leaders to improve matters.
Benefits of Problem-solving
Teams that problem solve function better than those that don’t. The benefits of problem solving include:
Empowerment
When employees are encouraged to solve problems, it gives them a sense of autonomy and self determination. They feel trusted and valued by their organization, which boosts morale.
Skill Development
Problem solving is a valuable skill and when employees are given the opportunity to use and develop this skill, it enhances their confidence and job satisfaction.
Engagement
Problem-solving activities make work more interesting and challenging for employees. It staves off monotony and keeps employees engaged and motivated.
Recognition
Employees who solve problems are often recognized and rewarded for their contributions. This recognition boosts employee self confidence, sense of worth, and trust that their efforts are valued.
Team Collaboration
Problem-solving usually involves collaboration with colleagues. This strengthens team bonds and creates more positive work environments, leading to higher morale.
Continuous Improvement
When employees are actively involved in problem-solving, improvements within the organization accelerate. Seeing that ideas and efforts to improve lead to positive changes is motivating.
Reduced Frustration
Frustration can be a morale killer. When employees are given the tools and autonomy to address and solve problems, it reduces frustration and stress levels.
Innovation
Problem-solving leads to innovative solutions. Employees who are encouraged to innovate are likely to have higher morale because they see their ideas making a difference.
Most clients will pay their own CC processing fees.
Will yours?
Save $12,000 in CC processing fees per year or more!
Why Won’t Team Members Solve Problems?
Despite the benefits of problem-solving and our natural bent towards the process, many team members stay sidelined in the problem-solving process. Here are some common reasons why:
Fear of Problems
Remember when you accidentally broke the remote control and your mother flipped her wig? What about when you were on a family outing and the car conked out, and then dad started to swear? When the adults around us worry that problems are about to usher in doom, we learn that problems aren’t a gateway to growth, but groans. Years of conditioning have made us problem-averse.
Fear of Getting in Trouble
Knowing that a leader panics in the face of problems may discourage team members from trying to solve problems because they fear they’ll fail and get yelled at for the flub.
Autocratic Leadership and Micromanagers
Autocratic leaders subconsciously train employees not to think for themselves or worse, naturally selected for those with the least amount of enthusiasm for diving in and fixing matters. While the drawbacks aren’t as severe if the dictator you have in power is ‘benevolent’, the leadership style still shuts down high-functioning team members by sending a signal that only the top brass are allowed to identify and solve problems.
No Permission
Some team members might believe they are too new to the team to make a suggestions for improvement. Similarly, social anxiety may stop some from offering up ideas on how to fix problems because they fear the attention it will heap upon them, especially if their ideas fail.
No Authority
Solutions to our problems usually involve the cooperation of many people from all hospital departments. Those not in designated leadership roles may feel that they don’t have the authority to suggest solutions to other members of the team over which they have no organizational power.
Time Constraints and Priorities
You might see an inside issue as a problem, but for team members already drowning in other issues and responsibilities, your problem may go unrecognized or seem minor in the scheme of things. Along the same lines, a team member may want to help out with problem-solving, but with 25 cases already in the books, where will they find the time?
Leaders Don’t Seem to Care
When employees don’t think that anyone else cares about an issue or worse that no one else cares about their contribution to a matter at hand, they disengage.
No Recognition of Past Efforts
A new manager identifies problems, invites team members to participate in solving them, only to be met by stony resistance. The reason? Team members have been working for years at solving problems and improving matters. Asking them to do more without recognizing past efforts leaves teams feeling unrecognized and unrewarded.
Burned Out
Some people have given up on problem solving because, in some ways, they’ve given up life and working. These people don’t problem solve because they’ve become disengaged at home and in the hospital.
No One Has Got Their Back
Problem solving requires someone to raise their voice above the din of the others, to identify and issue, and to suggest a change. If individuals believe they are doing this without any help from coworkers or leaders, they may shrink back into the group and keep their mouths closed.
Mismanaged Failure
Problem-solving and failure go hand-in-hand. Team members that try and fail must be supported. Shaming or blaming a team member for failure is one of the most reliable ways to stop all subsequent efforts to help out with improvements.
Genuinely Don’t Know Where to Begin
Once I worked with a very large referral and emergency center. Some of the services were not profitable and the leader, understanding the value of inclusive problem-solving, shared relevant financial reportage with each service hoping the respective team members would evaluate the numbers and cook up ideas on how to improve. The services did not take the bait, but it wasn’t because they didn’t care; it was because they had never used financial reportage to assist with decision making. Indeed, some of them had never read a financial report in their lives. In cases where team members seem stumped, problem-solving should be stimulated with a teaching process called scaffolding. Scaffolding is a process in which students are nudged towards the desired lesson outcome. In the case of the emergency and referral center, the leader might have invited the team members to compare detailed reports of services by year, asked them to mark the changes, and then to have a discussion why the changes took place.
The Employee Doesn’t Care
While problem-solving may be a core competency of all humans, your problems may not be a top priority for all of your employees. Some of our hires aren’t interested in our problems; they are too busy working on their own: love life, children, family, personal finances, drug or alcohol issues, or other merely other career interests like becoming an internet celebrity, a chef, or full-time mom. When faced with an employee that doesn’t problem solve, certainly look at all of the rule-outs listed above, but remember that our line of work doesn’t ignite the same level of excitement with all people. The emotional health of your team demands that all team members show up with an avid interest in what’s getting in the way of our success and with a willingness to make it right. When employees can’t do that, try fixing the main problem by terminating the minor one.
