When you’re dealing with a team of people on a large project, it’s likely you have at least one of “those people” on your team. You know, the type who love to make things difficult on everyone. Maybe they seem lazy, or they insist on getting their way on every detail. As an event planning manager, you may be faced with the difficult task of addressing this team member for every one else’s sanity. Here are a few tips on how to deal with a difficult team member on your event planning team.

How to Deal with a Difficult Team Member

The first thing you need to do before approaching a difficult team member may surprise you. First, you’ll want to take a look at how you’re handling things. Ask yourselves these two questions first and make appropriate changes where needed:

Are you too aggressive in you event planning management? If so, you may come across more resistance from team members who don’t handle this style of management very well. Your team members like to feel like they’re a valuable part of your team and aggressive style management rarely works for this kind of project. Instead, find ways to take advantage of their natural skills and they’ll go much further to please you.

Evaluate your expectations. If you aren’t clear in what you’re expecting of your team members, then neither are they. Sometimes a team member just needs to have the clarity to become more productive. Find ways to make it easier for team collaboration.

If you’ve addressed these two items and still find yourself having to deal with a difficult team member, you’ll need to approach them privately. It is unfair for the rest of your team to have to put up with a rude team member who is missing deadlines. Use professional communication skills to coach and encourage the difficult team member to be a better team member.

Remember to stay positive and ask this person if there is anything you can do to help them. If this team member still isn’t cooperative, it may be time to consider removing them from the event planning team.