“I have a peer manager who is not upholding standards. It’s making things really difficult.  My crew is confused and unity in the store is really breaking down.  What do I do?” 

Well, this is always a bit of a tricky situation and is something that managers do face from time to time on varying levels. Take heart, boats usually don’t sink because of this but the course does get a little choppy.

First of all, what I would suggest is for us to be rock solid on our facts.  Drill down. Don’t be vague – be specific.  What standards are not being upheld.  Specifically, what incidents have happened because of this.  Are these emotionalized reports from your staff that need more investigation and confirmation?  Or are they rock solid? Also, be clear about how things are impacting the Co-op as a whole, as opposed to our personal preferences. Focus on what is happening to service, sales, production, morale.

Next, meet with your boss and professionally lay out what you have. Paint the picture without emotional judgements or conclusions. Provide facts and rely on emotions of caring, grace, and a desire for things to go well for all involved. The co-op, your boss, and the struggling manager. 

Then I would continue to focus on keeping your team on track. Let them know that someone not doing their job is not going to be a reason for us to do less.  Hold on to your standards. You could also assure them that you are working on this. 

Our work as managers in a situation like this is to always ask ourselves, “What can I do to stay focused and steady given my peer is not doing their job and my boss might be allowing it?”

If we don’t get this question nailed down for ourselves, things can really come apart.

There’s a lot of growth for us managers in situations like this.  Here at work and in life itself, we are always faced with the puzzle of what we can do and what we can’t.  It comes down to whether we can build internal strength and fortitude and drop another coin into our wisdom jar or hang around being perpetually bitter and resentful.

From my experience, situations like this take some time to resolve. Proactively keeping yourself and your crew together with straight talk and solid structures will do a lot as you chip away at getting all peer managers on the same page and working together.