In this case study below, you will find a brief scenario of a common problem when working in a collaborative setting. Read through the scenario and picture yourself as the outside consultant hired to address the situation. Think through the questions and think about the decisions that need to be made to resolve the issues and create a more cohesive, mindful co-working environment. You will answer each question below and then offer final recommendations.Case Study:
The Worker Allowed to Slide
(Found in Baim, Clark.Mindful Co-Working Be Confident, Happy and Productive in Your Working
Relationships. London: Jessica Kingsley Publishers, 2014. Print. pages 169-170)
In a busy government office, Jo, who used to be a capable worker, has been seen by her co-workers to be seriously underperforming for more than two years. She comes in late to work, has long lunch breaks and leaves early. She is often late for meetings and her co-workers have come to the point where they work around her, never giving her responsibilities because they know their own work will not get done if they depend on her. Despite this, Jo is still part of the rotation and she is still assigned tasks and projects. She always finds an excuse not to be part of planning sessions, and she always leaves before a proper de-brief can be done. None of her co-workers has felt able to challenge Jo, because she has in the past complained that people need to make allowances for her illnesses, which seem to change on a weekly basis. She has had several supervisors in the past two years, none of whom have challenged Jo for her very poor work records. Their answer has been to pass the buck by shifting Jo to different parts of the organization. On several occasions, workers have left their department rather than work with Jo, and they are furious that nothing is being done about her under-performance. One worker is heard saying that she is embarrassed to work for her department, given how thy are so inept at managing Jo. An outside consultant is hired to assess the situation, and reports the situation to the head office, so serious is the lack of management in the local office.
Each question needs to answered:
- Why and how do you think this situation was allowed to deteriorate to the point it did?
- How could it have been prevented?
- What is the role of emotion in this scenario? What stopped the co-workers and the supervisors from confronting Jo? What needs to be in place if workers and managers are expected to be able to challenge someone like Jo? In particular, what is the role of senior management in setting in place principles of accountability and responsibility at all ranks?
- If you were one of Jo’s co-workers two years ago, when she began to underperform, what would you do to help prevent the situation from becoming worse? What information would you need, and what back-up would you need? If you were Jo’s supervisor two years ago, how would you handle the situation?
- Which of the five principles of mindful co-working (see Chapter 1) do you think are most relevant to this case example?
- Does anything like this ever happen in your workplace educational experience? If so, what resources are available to help you and your colleagues take steps to prevent such episodes in the future?
- As an outside consultant hired to address this case, what final recommendations would you make to senior management to resolve the issues?