Ask HR: We got a bad review after an employee having a bad day snapped at a customer. What do I do?

Editor’s note: Welcome to Ask HR, our staffing advice column. Do you have questions about hiring, benefits, employee development and training or succession? Send them to pcoleman@gie.net. They will be anonymized and answered by the BEST Human Capital team.

Customer service is key in my business. Recently, an employee was having a bad day and snapped at a customer, who gave us a bad review on Google. I feel empathetic about what she was going through, but her behavior was unacceptable. I think firing her would be too harsh because she's been an otherwise great employee. What are my options?

Photo courtesy of BEST
Human Capital and 
Advisory Group

Oh, the joys of navigating the human experience of emotions, especially when they’re not your own!

This is such a valuable question for any position and company, and even more so for leaders. Whether we choose to act like we have them or not, feelings and emotions are a part of being human, and as much as some try to foster the “leave it at the door” mentality in the workplace (as if that’s fully possible or healthy), we are each bound to endure hardships, stressors and tough times. Sometimes bad days, can even impact our mental state and how we perform both personally and professionally.

However, it is still our responsibility to control and process those emotions and be able to healthily channel them without negatively impacting the world around us. For friends, family and employers, it’s certainly beneficial to hold space and provide support and empathy for the person hurting — but to an extent and within certain bounds. There’s a line there, especially when running a business.

Let’s touch on the importance of customer service! While there’s something to be said for having quality products, providing excellent service, maintaining smooth logistics, etc., customer service is the backbone of any company and can make or break your brand.

People often remember the experience they had with your company long after the product or service has run its course, and high-level customer service is the saving grace to mend a relationship or save a customer when things go wrong. All in all, your company needs to consistently provide that top-tier experience — even when the last thing they want is to deal with people, especially unhappy ones.

You’re on the right track in thinking that firing this person right off the bat is too harsh, especially if this is a first offense. This is where constructive leadership comes in, and it can be done by balancing empathy for your employees while protecting the integrity of your business.

A good place to start is with a one-on-one with this employee, addressing the unacceptable behavior and the negative result of it. Let this transition into an attempt to understand and hear out what they’re going through.

From there, provide support. This can look like encouraging them to lean on loved ones or a professional (let me be clear that this does NOT mean coworkers or customers; even in a “family” culture, there is a line here), spending time on their hobbies, perhaps a bit of time off to collect themselves, or, if your budget allows, investing in mental health resources for them.

To conclude the conversation, make it a point to let them know that you empathize and are here to help in the ways you can, but that you, their team and their customers/clients are relying on them to bounce back and continue to be a high performer.

The rest is theirs to sort through; that’s the part that no one can do for them.

While this may sound harsh, the world keeps turning even when yours is falling apart. Learning how and when to process your emotions is imperative to harnessing the power of emotional intelligence and running your feelings so they don’t run you — and possibly cost you your relationships, your health or your job.

As a leader, it is your job to look out for your people and your business. When you take care of your people, they take care of you.

But I’ll end by saying this: If you’re at capacity for the resources you can provide this employee and there is still no change in behavior or they do not demonstrate consistent improvement, know when to let go.

Unfortunately, sometimes it gets to a point where addition by subtraction is the solution, but only when you can say that you truly tried investing in this professional with no ROI.

Hope this helps and best of luck to you in navigating this situation and all to come!

Paige Franks is senior executive search adviser at BEST Human Capital & Advisory Group. She writes the Ask HR column for Garden Center magazine.