A reader writes:
I lead a team of consultants within a larger analytics team. Our role as “partners” emphasizes our customer-facing responsibilities, such as understanding customer needs, responding to inquiries and requests, and acting as thought partners.
With the shift to remote work during the pandemic, our company now primarily uses Slack for communication. I and another team member are based on the west coast, while the remaining three team members are on the east coast. Despite being a west coast-centric company, most of our partners are on this side and utilize Slack for communication.
One of my newer team members, who joined six months ago, sets her Slack status as “away” constantly, making it difficult to know if she is online. After waiting to see if this was temporary, I addressed the issue with her. She explained that she does not want to feel pressured to respond immediately or be bombarded with urgent messages. I suggested using status messages to indicate availability, but she deemed it too much effort and insisted on finding an alternative that suits her best. She also accused me of disregarding individual work styles and intentions.
This situation surprised me as I strive to be hands-off as a manager, with occasional coaching to be more prescriptive. I refrain from reaching out to her frequently assuming she is unavailable. Customer feedback also indicates a lower volume of interactions with her due to her online status. When I raised this concern, she accused me of unfair comparisons with other team members.
My HR representative supports my decision to require online availability signaling and advised establishing team norms and expectations. However, her reaction left me feeling incompetent and concerned about setting a precedent for the team.
Your team member’s behavior is impacting your management and team dynamics and needs to be addressed promptly. It is reasonable to expect employees to indicate their availability, especially in customer-facing roles and when Slack is a primary communication tool. Your employee’s resistance to this reasonable expectation is a red flag for broader issues.
Establish clear requirements for online availability and hold her accountable. Encourage her to propose alternatives if needed, but insist on compliance with team standards. If she continues to resist, it may be necessary to reconsider her fit for the role. It is important to address this issue to maintain professionalism and efficiency in your team.
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