Managing employee complaints

One of the toughest parts of running a small business is dealing with employees who are in some way dissatisfied or upset. While a lot of the complaints that you hear will be legitimate, or at least understandable, others may seem unfair on the employee’s part.

It is important for a manager to be able to communicate effectively with their employees. Effective communication means being able to discern the employee’s meaning as well as clearly articulating your own response. Here are three tips for dealing with employee complaints:

1. Listen: Always hear the employee out, making sure that they understand that you value their opinion, and their job satisfaction is important to you.

2. Ask questions: Try to get to the very bottom of what they are saying. In many cases, the real issue may actually not be what is initially addressed in the conversation.

3. Confirm a reaction: Make sure that you are clear when you inform the employee of your planned course of action in response to the complaint. You should also do this if you have no intention of responding, and you should clarify your reasons.