Your employee messed up. Now what?

I remember getting an early morning call from an employee who had accidentally released an update not meant for customers.

This was bad!

I was fuming inside, but adding my anger to his misery would have only made things worse.

There’s another reason I was able to hide my anger.

Not long ago, I was in the same position as my employee. I had made a huge mistake. Looking back, what stood out wasn’t the mistake itself. It was my boss’s reaction that made all the difference.

I thought my boss would be mad. He wasn't. He was firm, but also calm under pressure. He taught me to how to recover gracefully from a setback without losing motivation.

I also learned 'how' you respond to your employee’s mistake matters as much as the mistake. If you react with anger, your employee is likely to hide future mistakes, and performance will suffer. This is a destructive response.

In contrast, a constructive response subtracts blame and adds accountability. It focuses on fixing the mistake, and learning from it as quickly as possible.

Responding productively doesn’t mean being “nice” or ignoring the mistake. It's the opposite.

Here’s a 3-step framework to respond constructively to your employee's mistakes.

1. Act with urgency: Think like a firefighter and put out the fire first. (You’re in damage control mode)
2. Identify root cause: Work with your employee to identify what happened, why it happened, and how it can be prevented in future. Don't shy away from a difficult conversation. Both of you need to have it at the right time.
3. Discuss the mistake: If sharing the mistake helps the team improve, encourage your employee to openly discuss the mistake and share lessons learned. (Read: How Amazon treats mistakes)

After a couple of months had passed, my employee brought up the incident again.

We laughed a little not forgetting the seriousness of the situation. He finished the call, by saying, "Thank you for helping me that morning." His tone said it all.

It was clear to me that not only had he had learned the lesson, but he had also managed to save face in the process. A win-win!

Ali

PS: I'm curious. Have you ever had to deal with an employee’s big mistake? How did you handle it? Please share. I love reading your responses.