In November we talked about Matyr behaviour in organizations. This month we are going to discuss ‘Controllers’.

Controllers unlike Martyrs do not cry and become victims. These are the people who are very smart and usually are very good at what they do, however they do not like to share. They like to be seen as the favoured one and are very competitive. They will hide opportunities from their colleagues in order that they become the top performer. Often this can be detrimental to the organization and the team. They keep important information in their heads and do not write it down. Quite often this is not deliberate and often controllers do not realize what they are doing. They move very quickly from one thing to another. If they are challenged they get very defensive and often use aggressive communication to intimidate their challenger or to get their own way with their colleagues. This behaviour normally comes from a need to be approved of and a need to be the hero or heroine. Most likely they are your employee achieving the best results but the worst employee because they are not team players. They also try to become indispensable to an organization and often use this as blackmail for higher rewards or to get everything their own way.

Meet with the controller regularly with the team and have a very clear agenda ensuring that information that should be shared, is.

Handling controllers in a positive way is difficult however not impossible. Their need is to receive positive recognition and to be known as a star. They need to be managed by processes. Make sure that if they are in sales that they have a call report which has the information required to be shared with the team. If they are in operations, or business development, have processes in place that are overt to the team and manage the processes strongly. Meet with the controller regularly with the team and have a very clear agenda ensuring that information that should be shared, is. Meetings need to be clear, concise and short to keep the attention span of the controller. They are normally fidgety and want to get on with it and not waste time. To ensure that the controller feels important, spend specific time with them to allow them to feel special. Take them out for coffee and spend some personal time with them now and again. Sometimes the controller is so effective that they are forgotten about. If they do not get attention they are like children and normally play up to get it. Many controllers are “two yearers,” starting off in the first year with a hiss and a roar getting fantastic results. If not managed effectively or given lots of challenge, the second year is when they start to cause problems through boredom or lack of recognition and alienate themselves from the team.  They then leave to move onto something else more exciting and new to them.

If controllers are managed effectively they are an asset to the organization and can often become promotable. Let loose they tend to be destructive and there is usually a sigh of relief when they give notice.