Why is my employee so angry and belligerent?

Dear Caroline, 
When my employee started working here, he seemed like a well-adjusted but introverted person. A few months later, he started showing impatience with his colleagues, answering rudely and even shouting at them. I tried to counsel him about his behaviour, but the problem kept getting worse. He always seems very angry and ready to snap. What is the best way to manage such an angry and belligerent employee?  Johnson
 
Hello Johnson,
As a manager, it is good that you care about the well-being of your staff and even better, you have noticed something is amiss and are committed to resolving it. I do not know what was discussed in your meeting, but this did not improve behaviour. 

Therefore, I would suggest identifying someone within the organisation with whom he has a great relationship and asking them to talk to him to determine the cause of this behaviour. 

Secondly, you may also try reaching out to a close relative or next of kin, such as a parent, spouse, or sibling, to determine the problem further. Depending on your findings, you will be better positioned to decide the best course of action.  Alternatively, you could encourage him to take some time off to rest to seek help and deal with his troubles. 

His current behaviour may be linked to aspects of stress, anxiety, fatigue or mental exhaustion that is causing him to lash out and likewise making it difficult to effectively manage his emotions and adequately respond to those around him. 

While the above will support your team member, please also be aware that his behaviour has also impacted others, and they too will need some support as they try and understand what is going on. 

You may want to consider introducing regular team building activities.  These activities can be purely fun where the team shares an outing such as team lunches, or you could consider semi-structured activities linked to a specific agenda with a learning goal. 

The focus could then be developing desirable team behaviours, which would undoubtedly define acceptable behaviour and values within the team.

Caroline Mboijana,
Managing Director, The Leadership Team (U)  [email protected]