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[maybe]

Hi,

I'm a co-chair of my unwieldy, uncivil department.  I have no real power despite my title, but I have a decent though very formal working relationship with my dean.  At a recent meeting I had to chair about an initiative I was asked to launch, a certain colleague who has a track record of being a pain in the a* but who also has a good working relationship with the dean was doing his best to obstruct the committee's work by challenging every point that was made, being aggressive, unhelpful, etc...In fact, this rude and unhelpful colleague probably has a better relationship with the dean than I do because hu volunteers for every adminstrative project and never pushes back when the administration proposes disagreeable ideas.  Hu is the ultimate ambitious yes-man.  But when no administrators are around hu's a bully and a nightmare.     

I feel uncomfortable about complaining to the dean in part because of the dean's relationship with this person.  Also, the dean, to hu's credit, does not invite gossip and I've never had to have a discussion like this with hu.  I don't really want to put the dean in a position of having to respond to my complaints; I just want them to be heard.   

I managed the meeting fairly well given the rude colleague, but I'm afraid because of similar situations in the past that this person will attempt to derail the committee by going to the administration to complain about something or other that we are doing (I work in a mind-bogglingly petty place).  And I simply want to make sure to protect the committee, to make sure that all my hardworking colleagues who are volunteering their time to help the school are not slandered and made to look bad. 

So, my question is: do any Deans out there have any suggestions on how to broach the uncomfortable subject of complaining about a colleague's behavior.  Are there better or worse ways of doing this?

One idea that I had was to simply write up a report that "documents" the meeting, and to include a few objectively written lines about the way in which the person behaved badly.

But I'd be curious to hear other ideas about good or bad ways to complain without sounding like a complainer and to ultimately quiet a bully who is more politically connected than I am.

Ugh and ugh. 

[larryc]

This one is easy: Recommend to the dean that he task your PITA colleague with the initiative.

[hipgeek]

Take the Dean out for lunch with a beer or two then start subtly making jokes about the way the disagreeable colleague dresses and see if that leads anywhere.  good luck!

[cgfunmathguy]

This one is easy: Recommend to the dean that he task your PITA colleague with the initiative.

Once again, Larry has hit the nail on the head. Something along the lines of "You know, I was discussing this with my departmental colleagues, and Professor PITA had some insightful comments. I wonder if you would mind adding him/her to the committee" should do it. Then Professor PITA will learn to STFU if s/he has nothing constructive to say. In department meetings, the response to any of his/her comments should be "Thank you for that, Professor PITA. Since you have some ideas about how this initiative from the Dean/Provost/President should work, I think I'll recommend that you be assigned to chair the committee." Only the biggest fool would not STFU after having that happen a couple of times.

[maybe]

Thanks for the replies and keep them coming, please. 

hipgeek:  Have you seen the way this person dresses?  Do I know you?

larry and mathguy:  First, the PITA colleague loves being the chair of things.  He will take all on initiatives, and destroy them.  Yes, hu's a complete fool, sort of.   Actually, I need to run this particular program as part of the assignment that justifies my course release.  (The PITA would happily do it, and the whole department would suffer as a result.)  It's an improtant project and not a particularly difficult one.  The only difficult thing is managing the PITA.  I can't really kick people off the committee, sadly...

 

[svenc]

I don't think your problem is figuring out how to complain to the Dean; it's figuring out how to keep control of the meetings despite the PITA colleague.

[barred_owl]

How about inviting the dean to one of the meetings regarding the initiative?

[dr_strangelove]

Why can't you kick people off the committee? Were they voted onto the committee? I was volunteered recently to head something, and handed a committee. The first thing I did was tell the chair of our department that I wanted to reconstitute the committee. It was too big and there were people on it I didn't want. He agreed.

If you really can't kick him off, then schedule the meetings at a time when he can't attend. Just because you're nice doesn't mean you have to play nice with bozos.

[cat_on_track]

Defuse Prof. PITA. Other committee members will probably have a problem with hu, too, so strategize:

- get a friendly person to come early to the meetings and take the other "head of the table" (unless its round); PITA will therefore not have the oppositional power position to you, but sit on sidelines

- invite the dean to the one meeting where truly important decisions have to be made (PITA will either be nice and quiet or embarrass huself)

- tape the meetings; ostensibly, to make sure that the minutes are really accurate, but most people won't embarrass themselves too much if there's a permanent record

- if you really want to make an enemy, sort of agree with PITA and say "you have half a point there" - trust me, it works. She never forgave me. Others are much more diplomatic and manage to say (through clenched teeth) "what an interesting point of view" and then move away from that topic.

As a co-chair of the department, the dean expects you to be able to manage "your people;" do document all disturbances, insubordinations, etc., but don't run with each item - have the file for Faculty Activity Reports time.

[hipgeek]

hipgeek:  Have you seen the way this person dresses?  Do I know you?

I don't think we know each other.  But there's something life this everywehere, and he usually dresses obnoxiously.

[mended_drum]

There is no good way to complain to the Dean about colleagues.  You can follow Larryc's suggestion, but don't bring up your annoyance with the colleague in question, especially to a dean who discourages gossip. 

I'm serious about this.

Go to the dean about a colleague only when he or she is doing or has done something seriously dangerous or unethical.  And even then, you tell the dean that you're coming "out of serious concern for" your colleague.  You have a certain amount of credit with your administration, built on by your service.  You only spend it on the most important things.  There may come a time when you have to face the dean and tell  him really bad news about a colleague:  sexual harassment, significant theft, drug-dealing to students, serious dereliction of duty.   If you complain every time you run into an irritating, obstructionist boot-licker, then you won't have time to do anything else, and you may not be taken seriously when it's really important. 

[maybe]

Thanks everyone for the feedback, and thank you mended_drum especially for the clear explanation.  I learned a valuable lesson here.  When in doubt, deep breaths, and consult the forum.

As I was posting harmless messages on the forum, PITA colleague revealed hu's PITA qualities to everyone who needed to know them by publicly blowing up at another committee member in the hallway in front of a crowd of students.  (PITA claimed I mistreated hu at last committee meeting when I silenced hu; PITA blew up at this other committee member for not coming to the rescue).  The other committee member who was screamed at by PITA marched down to the Dean and lodged a complaint.  I wasn't even in the building.

Now everyone knows and I didn't have to say a word... 

   

[svenc]

Heh, it's like the old joke about not having to outrun the bear, you just have to outrun the other guy: You don't have to put up with your PITA colleague, you just have to put up with him for long enough that someone else cracks first!

[jackit]

What mended_drum said.  Also note that the Dean puts up with lots of PITAs, and will be disappointed if you can't handle one.

[pantani]

The central question that I've found that deans have usually is:  how successful is this person in derailing what needs doing?  If you are able to have the project function regardless of the difficult person, deans  (mine anyway) are perfectly happy to let bullies and naysayers be themselves.  If the project isn't failing as of yet, the dean will not make any changes.  This is horrible for those of us who have to spend the emotive energy addressing it and sitting through such meetings, but deans don't care, so long as they get nice reports from the committee chair, or functional results should it be a task force.  Best thing is to have someone take minutes who documents all the objections and discontent.  Copy dean on the minutes. Following procedural orders made a distinct difference in my departmental meetings with my problem colleague.  Remind everyone of Robert's Rules or reigning rules of order, limit discussion time, carry out a vote, move to the next thing.  Agenda in advance, remind everyone about rules of order for amending agenda.  Stick to agenda and have time limits for meetings.