New York Lawyer
September 23, 2004

Q:
I am supervising a more junior lawyer whom I've known for a while but never worked with before. We have been very friendly through the years. What's awkward is that his work turns out to be not so great. He hands stuff in at the last minute, making it difficult to correct the problems, which include somewhat sloppy research, mediocre writing, etc.

I've just been fixing the work myself because it's been last minute, but also because I'm embarrassed to confront him on this. What can I do?

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A:

People often shrink from giving negative feedback, even to those whom they don't consider good friends. The friendship angle complicates things, though, for sure. I suggest the following thought process so that you can think about this relationship in a more constructive way:

Do the right thing for the firm. If this were purely a personal issue, you would handle it differently, but it's important to handle it in the way best suited for the firm's interests, which require a superior work product. So it's imperative that you handle the situation rather than just correcting the problems yourself.

Clarify expectations. Without making reference to past misdemeanors, you can sit down with the guy and say that you need to clarify what you expect from him on assignments (say "we should have had this conversation at the outset but it slipped my mind"). At that point you can make clear that you expect work to be handed in early enough so that adjustments can be made if necessary; that research must be double checked that it's accurate; that the writing must be coherent and convincing. Often people aren't really sure what they should do, and absent clear direction will simply decide for themselves what level of performance suffices. Absent any reaction, their conclusion will be that they are doing fine.

Don't avoid giving feedback. Delivering feedback, particularly on weaknesses, is a task many people neglect. Often they think of it as requiring them to insult or offend someone (you used the word "confront"), worry that it will be unpleasant, and avoid it altogether (simply working with other people as soon as they are on to the another project). This is neither the best thing for the individual or the firm; people need to be told how they can develop, and the firm needs to recoup its investment in people and turn them into fine lawyers, not just give up at the first signs of incompetence.

Practice feedback skills. What often holds people back is that they haven't honed their feedback skills. Reams of stuff has been written on this topic, but here are some quick pointers. First, focus on facts and specific behaviors ("you handed in this brief an hour before it was due, which made it hard to correct things") rather than on ego-busting conclusions ("you're a lazy procrastinator"). Second, use "I statements" -- meaning the effect something has on you, e.g., "When you handed in the document at the last minute, it meant that I had to put aside all my other work and frantically correct it, under enormous stress"). Telling people the effect you have on them hands them a "problem" that they can help solve. Next, focus on positive steps to alleviating the problem ("I'd be happy to help you with pacing your work so that observing deadlines works out better"), to get the point across that you are trying to help, not hurt, the guy. And of course, work to preserve your relationship by emphasizing that you're a team, so that he doesn't feel unfairly scrutinized. Think of yourself as sitting side by side, looking towards a more positive future, rather than confronting one another and looking negatively at past actions. In this way you can both deliver the message you need to, but also preserve your friendship, and hopefully get your friend to shape up his act.

Sincerely,
Holly English
Principal Consultant, Values at Work