“Muriel is a line worker, who reports to her supervisor, Vince, who reports to me. Muriel has been here for six months. I am certainly not her supervisor, but I am the Manager Once Removed for her team. Her team is a very important element of my system,” Sylvia explained.
“What’s the problem?” I asked.
“I was talking to Muriel, just asking how things are going, about how she has adjusted to working here. That’s when the fireworks started.”
Sylvia had my curiosity. “Tell me more,” I prompted.
“Her supervisor, Vince, remember that Vince reports to me. Vince walked by, interrupted us, began grilling me on our conversation. I tried to tactfully excuse Sylvia from the discussion, but she had a scared look on her face.”
“What did Vince say?”
“I pulled him into my office so we could talk in private. He said that I was undermining his authority, that if I had anything to say to one of his team members, I needed to go through him and he would deliver the message. Otherwise, he said, Hands Off.”
This happens too often! People need to adjust, communication isn’t something you can (or should) put borders on.