According to a 2012 report on Professionalism in the Workplace based on a survey conducted through the Center for Professionalism at York College of Pennsylvania, professionalism is more prevalent in existing employees than in new college graduate hires.
The qualities named most often as unprofessional by both groups were:
According to managers, the worst problems associated with new employees in terms of professionalism were:
The root cause of most unprofessional behavior is not so much a willfully out-of-control employee as an employee who has no idea that what he or she is doing is wrong. Does your organization provide clear guidance around its expectations in regard to professionalism? If not, chances are you, as a manager or supervisor, will encounter unprofessional employees more than once in your career.
It's not all in your head. We have a generation joining the workforce that has been shielded from criticism and failure to an unprecedented extent—particularly the children of middle-class baby boomer parents.
"The workplace may be the first time many young employees will confront an environment where simply 'trying our hardest and doing our best' may not be enough to win them a good sportsmanship medal and certainly not the promotion or career advancement they desire," notes Matt Steinkamp, MSW, LICSW, consultant for VITAL WorkLife.
On the other hand, this new generation is the most technologically wired ever seen—and their use of technology is often perceived as "wasting time" by older, less technologically-savvy workers.
Most managers and supervisors have been promoted due to their professionalism. They intuitively know to show up on time and dress appropriately—and they tend to have a superior work ethic and dedication. As a result, they themselves have probably never been confronted or coached about unprofessional behavior.
They are often at a loss as to what to do or say when an employee exhibits unprofessional behavior. Here are some guidelines recommended by Steinkamp.
"Don't assume your employees know your expectations," says Steinkamp. "Be very explicit during the interview process and initial onboarding about your expectations regarding punctuality, attire and work ethic."
Steinkamp recommends that you and each new report complete the following sentence as an on-boarding exercise: "One thing you should know about working most effectively with me is..."
"This exercise gives you an ideal opportunity to set expectations around work performance and professionalism," notes Steinkamp. "It will also give you a heads up as to what you can expect from this employee."
When giving assignments, don't assume your employees will automatically know how to do them and when they should turn them in based on how you'd perform that task.
"Until you're confident you and the employee are on the same page, give detailed instructions, hard deadlines and invite the employee to come to you with questions if he or she isn't sure how to proceed," advises Steinkamp.
"Don't assume that an employee displaying a certain behavior is being deliberately inappropriate or irritating," says Steinkamp. "Many times, the employee has exhibited the behavior in another work environment and has no idea that his or her loud voice, sexual humor, strong perfume or noisy gum chewing are considered unprofessional in this environment."
Managers can make discussions about these behaviors less painful by providing open and honest feedback the first time the behavior is observed. Don't wait for the next performance review.
"The employee is less apt to become defensive when you make it clear that you're invested in his or her success and that addressing behaviors perceived as unprofessional will be critical to their consideration for advancement," says Steinkamp.
If your employees don't have a clue about what's appropriate dress for "Casual Friday," chances are you haven't clued them in.
"Younger employees may define 'casual' very differently from the baby boomers and veterans on your staff," says Jody Bertram, senior EAP consultant for VITAL WorkLife. "You can't assume that all your employees understand what 'business casual' means to you."
Bertram also advises against using Casual Fridays as a test of your employees' business savvy. "There's no reason to let employees embarrass themselves inadvertently," says Bertram.
Help your staff maintain a professional dress code and avoid wardrobe missteps by making it clear that "casual" doesn't include bare midriffs, toes or any attire more appropriate for the beach than the office.
Several months ago, Bertram got a call from a manager concerned that one of his staff reported to work on a casual dress day wearing jeans—that though new and very expensive, had large holes in the thighs, frayed hems and rode very low on her hips.
While jeans were permissible at that workplace, jeans that revealing were not. "Isn't this an issue of common sense?" asked the manager. "Yes and no," replied Bertram.
While companies can and should expect employees to employ common sense, sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words. After consulting with Bertram, the manager went to HR to develop a casual dress guide that provided both written and pictorial guidelines for acceptable casual attire. The "don't" pictures were adorned with the International Symbol for stop.
Bertram also coached the manager about pulling the employee in to have a one-on-one discussion about the new guidelines to make sure the expectations were entirely clear.
"Some organizations are comfortable with casual attire that includes pajama bottoms, others don't even allow jeans," notes Bertram. "Every organization is free to set their own policies but they're also advised to make sure everybody knows exactly what those policies are."
Need help defining, describing or communicating with employees about inappropriate dress or other unprofessional behaviors? VITAL WorkLife is here to help. Contact us and ask to speak to an EAP consultant.
Also, one way to convince your employees that you're invested in their success is to refer them to the Employee Assistance Program (EAP) for coaching and skill building. "This is why your organization provides an EAP," says Steinkamp. "We've helped countless managers and employees address such issues."
If you're uncertain about whether a behavior is truly unprofessional or have concerns about how to approach an employee exhibiting unprofessional behavior, contact us.
Your EAP benefit provides free, unlimited and confidential counseling, coaching and support by telephone 24/7—not just for you and your family members, but also your employees and their families. This benefit also includes free face-to-face counseling with master's- and doctorate-level professionals. All you have to do is ask.
The VITAL WorkLife website offers helpful tools and information designed to help managers and supervisors address issues related to understanding and enhancing professionalism, including:
As part of your EAP, managers and supervisors have access to unlimited, telephonic consultations with a consultant, available 24/7 - to access call 800.383.1908. Log into your Member Website for additional support and resources.
For more information about VITAL WorkLife, our well being solutions for organizations, including our EAP, contact us.