Top 3 tips for effective communication, “do you have a minute?”

Do you have a minute?

The classic line heard in any HR office, “Do you have a minute” can mean anything from quite literally a one-minute question to the start of a three-week long investigation. The pop in door knock can create a certain amount of time-consuming chaos to your day, depending on the topic of conversation. Check out our tips on how to deal with the question “do you have a minute” in the best possible way to provide excellent service to your employees while keeping your sanity intact.

Tip 1- Don’t be afraid to say “No”

Sometimes it can take a lot of courage for someone to physically come to the HR office or approach you and ask for a minute of your time. Surely it would be rude to turn this person away and risk them feeling undervalued or like you don’t have time for their problems, right? Wrong.

If you had an issue you needed to discuss would you rather be given a time frame at a later date (assuming your issue wasn’t an emergency) or be rushed through what you are needing to say and feel brushed off and not listened to?

The truth is, if you really don’t have a minute then you should say so. You can politely say “I’m so sorry but I’m just about to jump on a conference call (or whatever you are busy with), can we make a planned time for you to come see me (or me come see you) later today (or tomorrow, or whenever you have time)?” Employees will understand that they caught you in a bad moment and probably appreciate the fact you are willing to make time for them.

This approach can also help filter out those unnecessary problems or help redirect their question to the right person. You may find that by saying you don’t have a moment right this second, the employee will find someone else to help them (who may have been the more appropriate person to help them in the first place) or they will solve the problem on their own. You might end up hearing “oh that’s ok, I just wanted to know my vacation balance, but I’ll look on my paystub when I get home” or “oh ok, I needed a code for the copier, I’ll just ask X for one”

Tip 2- Find out what you are in for

Maybe you do have one minute to spare. Heck maybe you have 5 minutes. But you don’t have 2.5 hours to listen to someone or deal with a deeper issue. So simply ask the person their intent or topic of inquiry. By saying “yes I do have 5 minutes but then I have to go to a meeting, what is this regarding?” or “of course I have a minute, but if it will be more than 10 we should probably reschedule so I have the right amount of focus to dedicate to you, what is the issue?” you can very simply and respectfully ensure that your bathroom break time and coffee break don’t get swallowed up along with the three other meetings you were supposed to go to because you didn’t realize how involved this conversation was going to be.

If an employee is hesitant to say what they need or want, or you see signs of them struggling emotionally, then its best to create time for them ASAP, even if it isn’t right that second. In these cases, you could say something like “are you ok? You seem agitated, would you like to spend 5 minutes together now and then we can circle back later?” By showing the employee that you do care about their situation and have some good intuition that they are struggling, they will be able to express themselves in a free manner and that will better help you figure out how much time and resources you will need to dedicate to this person.

Tip 3- If it is an emergency, even if it isn’t an emergency for or to you, make time

Each employee has their own life and their own interpretation of the world. That means that something that happens to one person can have a dramatically different impact than the same thing happening to another person. One of the hats a Human Resources professional plays is a counsellor and sounding board at times, and sometimes we just must make time for an employee to do just that for them.

Even if you feel the matter is trivial or unimportant, an agitated, crying, emotional, or irrational employee at your door is a clear signal they need to talk it out. Maybe they just need to straight up vent to you for 30 minutes. Maybe something in their home life has gone terribly sideways and they need to tell someone but don’t know who. Maybe they have been experiencing something in the workplace you weren’t aware of. Maybe it is something as small as their cell phone bill was higher than expected and they are unsure of how to pay it. It could also be something as big as they are experiencing domestic violence at home and are in fear of their children’s safety.

You may not have the answer or solution to their problem, but you do have the ability, and obligation, to help and listen to an employee in these circumstances. You may be able to point to a company EAP plan, provide phone numbers and information, or even calling the police with them. You may also be able to simply listen and be understanding of their hardship, if they really do just need to vent about their defiant teenager.

Yes, it may mean cancelling phone calls or meetings, but most other operational business functions are very aware what the HR world has to deal with and are respectful and mindful of the fact that an employee crisis, no matter how small, needs to be dealt with right that minute.

By allowing an employee time to cry, vent, decompress, make phone calls, disclose information, or ask for help when they truly need it will not only strengthen the trust level between you and the employee, but they will feel valued and appreciated by the company- two indicators that are huge for employee retention.

Summary

Our point here can be summed up as this: if you really don’t have time for an unexpected visitor with an inquiry and it isn’t an emergency, then say so. You will perform your job function better if you can plan and book your time with employees in a way that they feel valued and heard. And, if it really is an emergency, then make the time for them and provide support. Even though it may take more than a minute.