- Managers/supervisors who have difficulty with ‘leadership.’ This is a topic for another training program, but briefly two thoughts: a. “Am I generally trusted by those who know me well?” b. “Do I reliably and consciously choose to put the success and interests of others ahead of my immediate desires and needs?”
- A failure of the manager/supervisor to communicate adequate information to both the employee involved (consistent verbal and written feedback) and to the EA professional about the counter-productive behavior or performance problem(s).
- Proper referral steps and education about missteps is critical! A supervisor who motivates an employee to get as far as the EAP counselor’s front door does not guarantee that the EAP interview/assessment will be effective and productive. This type of communication problem is more likely if supervisor referral documentation is not clear. These problems are also likely if you have not consulted with the EAP prior to the referral.
- Supervisors need to be trained as to what “specific” means. Not getting specific behaviors and/or specific work problems, and not getting enough information about them can lead to a referral “misfire”.
When supervisors are not specific, the EAP counselor will be forced to rely upon the employee explaining to him why the supervisor made the referral. This is a recipe for disaster. Such an EAP assessment will usually go nowhere fast.
A supervisor may report that a troubled employee “fails to return daily sales reports on time (see attached quarterly log)” This is a visible, behavioral and measurable report of problems. It is far more effective than a supervisor referral form that states, “problems with timeliness of work.” The latter requires the employee to tell the EAP counselor what the supervisor means. With this situation, true personal problems of the employee will remain untreated.
Moral of the story: When employees control the purpose of the EAP interview, they control its outcome. This is assured with a “blind supervisor referral.” This kind of wasted time and wasted credibility can be avoided if EAP and leadership staff truly team well to do behavior risk management! Consult with the EAP, get the formal documents prepared, get the release(s) signed and utilize referral forms and guidelines.