{"id":807,"date":"2022-04-06T17:26:34","date_gmt":"2022-04-06T17:26:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-oswego-businesscommunicationmgrs2\/?post_type=chapter&p=807"},"modified":"2023-04-28T16:51:00","modified_gmt":"2023-04-28T16:51:00","slug":"8-4-negative-messages","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-oswego-businesscommunicationmgrs2\/chapter\/8-4-negative-messages\/","title":{"raw":"8.4 Negative Messages","rendered":"8.4 Negative Messages"},"content":{"raw":"
\r\n

LEARNING OBJECTIVES<\/h3>\r\n3. Organize and write negative messages\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\nJust as in life, the workplace isn\u2019t always a bowl of cherries. Sometimes things don\u2019t go according to plan, and it\u2019s your job to communicate about them in a way that doesn\u2019t ruin your relationships with customers, coworkers, managers, the public, and other stakeholders. When doing damage control, bad-news messages require care and skillful language because your main point will meet resistance. Rarely are people okay being told that they\u2019re laid off, their application has been rejected, their shipment got lost en route, prices or rates are increasing, their appointment has to be moved back several months, or they\u2019re losing their benefits. Though some people prefer that the messenger be blunt about it, in most cases you can assume that the receiver will appreciate or even benefit by a more tactful, indirect approach. Keep in mind the following advice whenever required to deliver unwelcome news.\u00a0<\/b>\r\n

THE SEVEN GOALS OF BAD-NEWS MESSAGES<\/h1>\r\nYour ability to manage, clarify, and guide understanding is key to addressing challenging situations while maintaining trust and integrity with customers, coworkers, managers, the public, and other stakeholders. Keep in mind these seven goals when delivering bad news in person or in writing:\r\n
    \r\n \t
  1. Be clear and concise to avoid being asked for additional clarification.<\/li>\r\n \t
  2. Help the receiver understand and accept the news.<\/li>\r\n \t
  3. Reduce the anxiety associated with the bad news as much as possible by expressing sympathy or empathy.<\/li>\r\n \t
  4. Maintain trust and respect between you and your audience to ensure the possibility of good future relations.<\/li>\r\n \t
  5. Deliver the bad news in a timely fashion in the appropriate channel(s).<\/li>\r\n \t
  6. Avoid the legal liability that comes with admitting negligence or guilt.<\/li>\r\n \t
  7. Achieve the designated business outcome.<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\nLet\u2019s look at how we can achieve these goals in examples of the tricky situations in which we might find ourselves in the workplace.\r\n\r\nLet\u2019s say you are a supervisor and your manager has tasked you with getting Chris, an employee who is usually late for work and has been arriving even later recently, to start arriving on time. Chris\u2019s tardiness is impairing not only his performance but also that of the entire team that depends on his work. You figure there are four ways you can handle this:\r\n
      \r\n \t
    1. Stop by Chris\u2019s cubicle and simply say, \u201cGet to work on time or you\u2019re out\u201d<\/li>\r\n \t
    2. Invite Chris out to a nice lunch and let him have it<\/li>\r\n \t
    3. Write Chris a stern email<\/li>\r\n \t
    4. Ask Chris to come to your office and discuss the behaviour with him in private<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\nLet\u2019s see how each of these alternatives meets our seven goals in delivering bad news.\r\n\r\nFirst, if you approach Chris with a blunt ultimatum at his desk, you can get right to the point there but risk straining the supervisor-employee relationship by putting him in his place in front of everyone. The aggressive approach might prompt Chris to demand clarification, make defensive excuses, or throw hostile counter-offensives right back\u2014none of which are desired outcomes. For that matter, the disrespectful approach doesn\u2019t formally confirm that the tardiness will end. The lack of tact in the approach may reflect poorly on you as the supervisor, not only with Chris but with your manager as well.\r\n\r\nWhen you need to speak to an employee about a personnel concern, it is always best to do so in private. Give thought and concern to the conversation before it occurs and make a list of points to cover with specific information, including grievances. Like any other speech, you may need to rehearse, particularly if this type of meeting is new to you. When it comes time to have the discussion, issue the warning, back it up in writing with documentation, and don\u2019t give the impression that you might change your decision. Whether the issue at hand is a simple caution about tardiness or a more serious conversation, you need to be fair and respectful, even if the other person has been less than professional. Let\u2019s examine the next alternative.\r\n\r\nLet\u2019s say you invite Chris to lunch at a nice restaurant. He sees the fine linen on the table, silverware for more than the main course, and water glasses with stems. The luxurious environment says \u201cgood job,\u201d but your serious talk will contradict this nonverbal signage, which will probably be an obstacle to Chris\u2019s ability to listen. If Chris doesn\u2019t understand and accept the message, requiring him to seek clarification, your approach has failed. Furthermore, the ambush fails to build trust, so you don\u2019t know whether Chris is going to make the extra effort to arrive early or just put in his time there doing the bare minimum while looking for another job.\r\n\r\nLet\u2019s say instead that you\u2019ve written Chris a stern email. You\u2019ve included a list of all the recent dates when he was late and made several statements about the quality of his work. You clearly say he needs to improve and stop being late, or else. But was your email harassment? Could it be considered beyond the scope of supervision and interpreted as mean or cruel? And do you even know if Chris has received it? If there was no reply, do you know whether it achieved its desired business outcome? A written message may certainly be part of the desired approach, but how it is presented and delivered is as important as what it says. Let\u2019s examine our fourth approach to this scenario.\r\n\r\nYou ask Chris to join you in a private conversation. You start by expressing concern and asking an open-ended question: \u201cChris, I\u2019ve been concerned about your work lately. Is everything all right?\u201d As Chris answers, you may demonstrate that you are listening by nodding your head and possibly taking notes. You may learn that Chris has been having problems sleeping or that his living situation has changed. Or Chris may decline to share any issues, deny that anything is wrong, and ask why you are concerned. You may then state that you\u2019ve observed the chronic tardiness and name one or more specific mistakes you have found in Chris\u2019s work, ending by repeating your concern. Because showing your concern makes Chris feel valued, he opens up about his situation so that you understand where he\u2019s coming from. It may turn out that he has to drop his kids off for school at 8am and then contend with Queensway traffic for the next hour to get to the office, consistently making him a half hour late. You can then both agree that he\u2019ll stay a little later or put in the missing hours at home, then write up that agreement in an email with your manager Cc\u2019d.\r\n\r\nRegardless of how well or poorly the conversation goes, if Chris tells other employees about it, they will take note of how you handled the situation, and it will contribute to their perception of you. It guides their expectations of how you operate and how to communicate with you as this interaction is not only about you and Chris. You represent the company and its reputation, and your professional display of concern as you try to learn more sends a positive message. While the private, respectful meeting may not be the perfect solution, it is preferable to the other approaches considered above.\r\n\r\nOne additional point to consider as you document this interaction is the need to present the warning in writing. You may elect to prepare a memo that outlines the information concerning Chris\u2019s performance and tardiness and have it ready should you want to present it. If the session goes well, and you have the discretion to make a judgment call, you may elect to give him another week to resolve the issue. Even if it goes well, you may want to present the memo, as it documents the interaction and serves as evidence of due process should Chris\u2019s behaviour fail to change, eventually resulting in the need for termination. This combined approach of a verbal and written message is increasingly the norm in business communication\u00a0(Business Communication for Success, 2015, 17.1)<\/a>.\r\n

      INDIRECT BAD-NEWS MESSAGE ORGANIZATION<\/h1>\r\nKey to achieving Goal #2 of delivering bad news\u2014i.e., helping the receiver understand and accept information they don\u2019t want to hear or read\u2014is organizing the message using the indirect approach described in\u00a0\u00a74.1.2<\/a>. If you tactlessly hit your audience over the head with really bad news, you run the risk of them rejecting or misunderstanding it because they may be reeling from the blow and be too distracted with anger or sadness to rationally process the explanation or instructions for what to do about the bad news. A doctor never delivers a really serious diagnosis by coming right out and saying \u201cYou have cancer!\u201d first thing. Instead, they try to put a positive spin on the results (\u201cIt could be worse\u201d), discuss test results in detail, talk about treatment options, and only then come around to telling the patient the bad news. At that point, being clear about the bad news ensures that the receiver understands the gravity of the situation and is therefore motivated to follow through on the therapeutic recommendations given earlier. Key to avoiding misunderstandings when delivering bad news, then, is the following four-part organization:\r\n
        \r\n \t
      1. Buffer<\/li>\r\n \t
      2. Justification<\/li>\r\n \t
      3. Bad news + redirection<\/li>\r\n \t
      4. Positive action closing<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\nThis is much like the three-part structure,\u00a0only the body is now divided into two distinct parts where the order really matters, as we see in Table 8.10 and the explanation for each part below it.\r\n

        <\/a>TABLE 8.10 BAD NEWS MESSAGE OUTLINE AND EXAMPLE MESSAGE<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
        Part<\/th>\r\nExample Message<\/th>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
        1. Buffer<\/td>\r\nThank you for your order. We appreciate your interest in our product and are confident you will love it.<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
        2.\u00a0Explanation<\/td>\r\nWe are writing to let you know that this product has been unexpectedly popular with over 10,000 orders submitted on the day you placed yours.<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
        3. Bad news + redirect<\/td>\r\nThis unexpected increase in demand has resulted in a temporary out-of-stock\/backorder situation. Despite a delay of 2-3 weeks, we will definitely fulfill your order as it was received at 11:57pm on October 9, 2018, as well as gift you a $5 coupon towards your next purchase.<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
        4. Positive action closing<\/td>\r\nWhile you wait for your product to ship, we encourage you to use the enclosed $5 coupon toward the purchase of any product in our online catalog. We appreciate your continued business and want you to know that our highest priority is your satisfaction.<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<\/tbody>\r\n<\/table>\r\n(Business Communication for Success, 2015, 17.1)<\/a>\r\n

        BAD-NEWS MESSAGE BUFFER<\/h2>\r\nBegin with neutral or positive statements that set a welcoming tone and serve as a\u00a0buffer<\/strong>\u00a0for the information to come. A buffer softens the blow of bad news like the airbag in a car softens the driver\u2019s collision with the steering wheel in a high-speed car accident. If there are any silver linings that can calm the poor person about to be pummeled by the dark thunder clouds of bad news, here at the beginning would be a good time to point them out. The following are some possible buffer strategies:\r\n