How to manage a difficult employee

Updated November 9, 2026

Do not manage a difficult person, manage a specific behavior. Talk privately and soon, describe exactly what happened and its effect, ask what is going on, then agree on a clear change and a date to review it. Keep short written notes from the first conversation.

What to do

1. Pin down the behavior. Write two or three recent examples with dates: missed deadlines, rude replies in meetings, refusing tasks. If you cannot name an example, you are not ready to talk.
2. Talk early and in private. Raise it within a few days. Use the method in how to give feedback to employees: the moment, the action, the effect.
3. Look for the cause. Ask open questions. Unclear expectations, overload, a conflict with a teammate or a personal issue are common causes you can sometimes fix.
4. Agree on a specific change. One or two behaviors, what good looks like, and a review date two to four weeks out. Send a short recap email the same day.
5. Follow up as planned. Recognize real progress. If nothing changes, involve your manager or HR and follow your company's formal process.

What to say

To open the conversation, say:

I want to talk about something I've noticed, because I'd rather fix it now than let it grow. In the last two team meetings, you cut off Sam and Priya before they finished. They stopped contributing after that. What's going on from your side? I'd like us to agree on how meetings work from here.

Avoid

• Complaining about the person to other team members.
• Waiting months, hoping it will fix itself, then reacting with anger.
• Making decisions on discipline or termination alone: rules vary by company, state and country, so check with HR first.

Questions