If you're a human resources manager at a company, one of the most challenging things is figuring out how to respond to a disgruntled employee review and preserving your online reputation. Disgruntled employees may give bad company reviews on sites such as Glassdoor, thereby affecting the company's brand to future job seekers.
Sometimes people don't always realize that their behavior has been inappropriate. Often, an employer thinks they are trying to help their direct report by giving them constructive criticism, but it hurts their feelings, and they become disgruntled. Other times you may have an employee who is just unhappy with your company or the company culture since they tend to be very hostile towards everything around them, making working together challenging at best.
Are you guessing ways of how to respond to a disgruntled employee review? Here's some advice!
Uncover Who Is Posting the Comments
If you are going through Glassdoor reviews of your company and you land upon one, the first thing you should do is look at the profile of the person who left a review. You're looking for key details—like their company name, job title, location, or city. If they have other online reviews, it will be helpful to check those out too.
If you find a disgruntled former employee among your followers or on review sites such as Glassdoor, consider contacting them directly via email instead of responding publicly on social media. Suppose a conversation ensues after that initial contact attempt. In that case, you can always try again later down the road with more information from both parties involved for everyone involved to get some closure on whatever issues came up during their tenure together before moving forward towards better things!
Consult with Your Legal Team, If Necessary
You should always consult with your legal team if you feel your company is being accused of something that might need a response from legal counsel. If an employee has broken the terms of their employment contract, this may require you to consult with your legal team about whether you can take legal action before responding to the bad review.
Keep Reading: Different ways to track employee attendance
Investigate and Take Action
If you receive a complaint, the first thing to do is investigate. It means finding out exactly what happened and who was involved in the situation. If an employee is unhappy with something, there may be a reason why they are not satisfied with their work environment or the company culture. After you've investigated and understood why the employee is unhappy, it's time for action!
You'll want to make sure your actions resolve any issues in their online review and show that you care about their concerns by listening when they speak about how things affect them personally. If possible, try making changes in responding to negative reviews brought up by an employee so that you may receive positive reviews in the future instead of negative comments on similar topics (for example: "Nothing has changed since last year").
Make sure these changes are made publicly so everyone knows what happened and why you made these changes. It can help prevent similar problems from occurring again later down the line when someone new takes over management duties within your company, leading to more negative reviews coming back onto your desk!
Keep Reading: How to tell an employee they need to improve
Don't Take It Personally
You should be aware that you may receive feedback from disgruntled employees. The most important thing to remember is that you shouldn't take it personally. If you respond to negative Glassdoor comments with anger or emotion, it will only make things worse. Also, sarcasm is an easy trap to fall into because the reviewer might have said something extremely rude or offensive. Still, if you respond with a sarcastic comment, your response will be even harsher than theirs was.
Acknowledge Responsibility and Offer an Apology
Acknowledge responsibility and offer an apology. It is essential to acknowledge the issue before moving on to other points. It's also necessary to recognize the employee's feelings, experiences, point of view, complaints, or concerns. You can start by saying, "I understand why this is frustrating for you." Or "I apologize for any frustration caused by our actions." Then give them some time to vent in their review so they can get all of it out before responding with your thoughts.
Keep Reading: How often should an employee be evaluated?
Focus on What You've Learned From the Employee
Employees who are disgruntled with their employer are often looking for a way to vent. They want an open and honest conversation about what needs to change, so you must listen to them and be willing to hear their perspective.
Once the employee feels heard, it can be helpful for you to take responsibility for any issues they've raised-this shows the employee that you're taking action, so they feel supported, which encourages them to stay engaged in their work environment. If done correctly, this will also give your employees confidence that there won't be repercussions if they voice concerns or offer constructive criticism during future reviews (which may lead them back into being one of your biggest advocates!).
Standing for Employee Rights Builds Stronger Employer Brands
In the end, you're not going to win every battle. But you can and should stand for employee rights in the workplace environment. Try to respond to negative employee comments and listen to them. If your business is an excellent place to work, it will be reflected in your employee reviews—and that's something worth fighting for to get future employees.
Is your company experiencing bad reviews online? Contact us for tips on improving your work environment and your employer brand.