MAR 2018
HCA The Human Capital Advisor
a team of people shaking hands
People. Our business, your bottom line.
   

A dilemma which organizations often face is the outsized makeup of prima donnas - extraordinarily talented and extraordinarily ego driven. If there is one type of employee that managers and co-workers dread, it's the so-called prima donna.  

Most of us are familiar with the term "prima donna." Derived from the word of opera, where it signifies greatness, when applied in the real world it describes someone whose vanity and lack of discipline is disruptive to team play and collaborative efforts. We all are familiar with prima donnas in public life - many are entertainers and athletes - but the ones with whom we cross paths in our careers definitely have the most significant impact on us.  

Who Are They?

HCA Partner Kevin McNerney explains the dilemma regarding prima donnas as employees. "Their exceptional performance is a topic of debate among managers and co-workers as to whether their troublesome behavior overshadows sterling performance. Managers clutch at remedial measures while fellow associates cringe at the otherwise unacceptable behavior."

Prima donnas typically display several obvious traits and some not so obvious. They view their contributions as invaluable and themselves as irreplaceable. They are not team players. They often don't follow the rules, i.e., policies, cultural norms, etc, while relishing in their reputations as outliers and special. As McNerney suggests "they think about their patch differently," meaning they view things through a personal lens that filters out the needs of others.

Here is a short list of some obvious traits and behaviors that often are displayed:
  • Creativity
  • High intellect
  • Unchecked ego
  • Need for adulation
  • Arrogance
  • Stubbornness
  • Poor listening skills
  • Absence of empathy - little concern for the needs and views of others
  • Disregard for team organization goals or needs
  • Unable to accept criticism or contrary viewpoints
  • Low self-confidence often masked by aggressive behavior
As mentioned, the problem with prima donnas is that they are typically as talented and effective as they believe. If they are not talented, they are usually terminated. If they are high performing, then they are often viewed as irreplaceable and tolerated. The cost of that tolerance, however, is potential damage to morale, undermining management effectiveness and eroding organization culture and values.

"Their exceptional performance is a topic of debate...as to whether their troublesome behavior overshadows sterling performance."
HCA Partner Kevin McNerney

Prima donnas are very often individual producers, sales pros or subject matter experts, i.e., specialized attorneys, scientists, IT experts, or finance/deal makers. They tend to inhibit individual contributor roles with deep subject matter expertise and limited perceived need to be part of a team.The problem arises when it is vital that a prima donna has to function as a team member for the overall good of the organization.

Consider a comment from the late Supreme Court Associate Justice Harry Blackmun.  "We are all eccentrics. We are 9 prima donnas." Working as individuals can allow such greatness. So there is a time and place for prima donnas, but an organization has to be very strategic about how many, and where, they will operate.

What To Do

Dealing effectively or changing the behavior of a prima donna is daunting, but not impossible. HCA Business Advisor and Industrial Psychologist Dr.Joe Horowitz suggests a couple of fundamental principles.
  • Work through problems or issues by taking into account their self-interests
  • Always remember that challenging them is the least effective way to approach them
  • Remember you are often dealing with low self-esteem so you need to approach them accordingly. Be sensitive to its implications
"Employ lots of empathy but don't back down. Tough love is absolutely the attitude to have."
HCA Partner Cathy Lange

The manager must avoid complacency and must be willing to "go to the mat" to address the problem. Once in that mindset, following these steps is a suggested approach:

1.  Analyze the disruptive behavior and the true "cost"/impact to the organization.
Distinguish minor infractions such as lack of compliance with administrative processes to ignoring company values or disregarding management directives. Is the behavior detrimental to the morale of others? Is it exposing the organization to legal risk? Does it impact the effective performance of others? Does it harm the credibility of the organization leadership?

2. Plan the approach.
How can the issues and problems be simplified and explained? What are the problematic behaviors and what are the negative consequences to the organization and the team? Explain them clearly and succinctly.

3.  Create an accountability model.
Optimal results will be achieved by tying desired behavior to compensation or performance goals or removing benefits that impact stature, such as title and office working space. Compensation adjustments may well be the solution of last resort but the only one that can work.

4.  Be organized and ready for the meeting.
Rehearse your approach and anticipate reactions and challenges. You must be firm and direct. Expect blowback.

5. Be positive and constructive.
HCA Partner Cathy Lange  points out that "ego may well be fragile so DO NOT be critical and DO NOT try to 'knock them down a peg.' Stroke the ego in order to create the best possible environment to tackle the big issues. Employ lots of empathy but don't back down. Tough love is absolutely the attitude to have."

6.  Seek agreement.
Do not end the discussion without clearly specifying your expectations and gaining agreement with a follow-up action plan. Be certain to have objective and measurable ways to monitor progress.

7. If all else fails, play the wild card.
Be ready to explain, in no uncertain terms, that no one is indispensable.

Other Tools

A few tools that could help improve the receptivity to the management intervention include the following:
  • Assign a mentor - Select someone not in the reporting line, but a mature and sensitive but tough-minded person.
  • Conduct a 360 review - Receiving direct and unvarnished feedback from their team members and peers might connect with their ego issues.
  • Coaching - An independent coach might well be the perfect person to work with your prima donna. Lange explains that "the coach will be non-judgmental and can work the ego in a way that co-workers cannot. An added advantage for coaches is they are independent and not employees, thereby maximizing confidentiality. A key element to the coaching intervention is whether the individual employee is open to change and improvement."
Prima donnas, well managed, are a priceless resource for any organization. Your challenge is to create a personalized development plan that is tailored for that individual to reach their performance potential, maximizing their contributions and mitigating the related disruptions.

Here is a final insight from Barbara Walters - "Success can make you go one of two ways. It can make you a prima donna or it can smooth the edges, take away the insecurities and let the nice things come out."  

So work hard to help those problematic people "let the nice things come out."