Your own perception is not as important as the team member’s view of the problem. What may seem trivial to you could be very serious to the team member. So, all complaints must be treated with fairness and dignity.

Other complaints are serious to begin with, threatening the work environment. These can go from being an open wound to a fatality in terms of productivity and teamwork. It’s important to see complaints as chances to enhance your relationship with team members. The simple act of listening to and really hearing the complaint goes a long way toward making the team member feel important.

However, listening is not enough. In fact, if you listen and do nothing, the situation will get even worse. Instead, you need to deal with the issues and solve the problem, if possible.

As the leaders on the front line, managers and team leaders are often the first to hear team member complaints. And though sometimes they may seem unimportant, each complaint should be addressed and resolved. This course demonstrates how to resolve simple complaints and identify the hidden agendas that so often underlie the chronic grievances.

Managing Complaints is available as a 1.5 hour online course or as an interactive, 4-hour group workshop designed for 6 to 18 participants.

• Understand why all team member complaints must be dealt with rather than ignored or dismissed.
• Be more sensitive to all the problems-minor or trivial, real or imagined-that can lie behind complaints.
• Understand techniques used to determine underlying problems, which are not always the same as those the team member thinks are responsible for his/her difficulties.
• Use various techniques to solve such problems while maintaining a positive relationship with the team member.

Skill Points

• Ask team member to detail complaint
• Get agreement on substance of complaint
• Ask team member for solution
• Schedule time for investigation and agree on action plan
• Set a date for follow-up meeting
• Summarize and confirm conclusion

• Understand why all team member complaints must be dealt with rather than ignored or dismissed.
• Be more sensitive to all the problems-minor or trivial, real or imagined-that can lie behind complaints.
• Understand techniques used to determine underlying problems, which are not always the same as those the team member thinks are responsible for his/her difficulties.
• Use various techniques to solve such problems while maintaining a positive relationship with the team member.

This same course is also available online for your training needs. The online course is 1.5 – 2.0 hours in length.

To reinforce the learning from the online course, it is recommended that you also use the Participant Workbook - it serves as a companion to the class. Though not required, the workbook provides the learner with more information, references for future use and a handy troubleshooting guide for this skill. Designed for use with the classroom version of this course, the participant workbook does not correspond directly to the online course - it is, however, a valuable resource for practice of the skills and for reinforcement and is highly recommended.

The online course and the Participant Workbook may be purchased together for a special "blended learning" price.

Course Materials

Facilitator Guide

• Complete instructions on how to conduct the workshop.
• Explanatory text for the trainer, sample trainer narrative, transcripts of video segments and facilitation notes.
• Facilitator Resource CD-Rom containing PowerPoint presentation, additional resources, and reproducible pages from the facilitator guide as well as entire participant workbook.

Participant Workbook

• Exercises, forms, skill practice aids, and a video synopsis
• Job Aids section with tools and resources for applying the skills learned in the workshop
• Memory Jogger Card providing a handy reminder of the workshop's skill points

DVD

• Introduction followed by a scenario displaying positive use of the three skill points discussed in the program
• Video segments focusing on modeling positive behaviors for skill practices
• Scenarios in both office and industrial settings

Delivery options:

• Workshop 4 hours
• Online Training 1.5 hours
• Use as a Blended Learning session