When a management colleague called, our conversation went like this: “Mike, you are going to have to talk me down off the ledge! If the councilmember I told you about speaks like that to a staff member again, it may come to blows!”

I could palpably feel the tension and stress in my colleague’s voice across the phone connection. It was clear this was a major issue and that it had become personal.

His words remained clipped and forceful as he began to relate how, at just about every council meeting, the newest elected official singles out a staffer to give the third degree. He is an equal opportunity offender in that he passes it around, and he keeps getting worse.

His method is to ask involved, often obscure questions and to take copious notes. He then cross examines the staff member, trying to catch the individual in a misstatement or contradiction. When he finds one—and he always seems to find one—he tries to intimidate and humiliate the staff member.

My colleague admitted to having tried all of the methods that I had him use in the past. He had met with the councilmember one-on-one and met with the councilmember and the mayor. He had the mayor and another councilmember meet with the elected official too.

He had taken him to lunch, and he had called him the day of the meeting, He traveled with him to conferences and to state league meetings.

Assessing the Situation

Recognizing that this was incredibly serious for my colleague, I began to ask questions. My first one was “How does he treat you in those less formal environments?” The response was that outside of the council meetings, he was cordial if somewhat reserved, but at the meetings he was an attack dog.

My next question was to find out how the rest of the councilmembers react when the inquisitor starts in. The response this time was that they all look like they wish they were somewhere else, but none of them will challenge him in public anymore.

He treats them about as badly as he does staff if they cross him. Plus, he has contributed to several of their election campaigns, so they feel like they owe him.

My final question was to find out if my colleague thought the official was trying to chase him away from his current management position; however, that didn’t seem to be at the top of his agenda. He also didn’t think it would matter if he left. In fact, that most likely would embolden the official to become even more aggressive. At least right now, my friend could run some interference.

Additional Coping Behaviors

I knew this was not a simple situation. After contacting my governance colleagues and some former elected officials who I respect and could talk with, I recommended several behavioral approaches:

• Stay calm and recognize it isn’t personal. The inquisitor would be acting this way irrespective of who sits in the manager’s seat.
• Make sure staff is truly prepared. If this means practice sessions, extra packet review, or using more senior members for council appearances, be willing to invest resources in flawless presentations.
• Reach out even more. If this means a special one-on-one review of the agenda, it would be worth it to protect staff.
• Approach others for assistance. Determine if there are individuals or institutions in the broader community that might be influential with the inquisitor and ask for their help.
• Remain professional at all times.While it is tempting to use the inquisitor’s tactics against him, this strategy simply reflects badly on the manager, the staff, and the community. It also emboldens the questioner.
• Be patient. The emotional energy required to behave as an inquisitor and the lack of substantive response often results in short tenures for disruptive members.
• Respect democracy. Like it or not, the inquisitor is elected and must be accorded the respect of the office.

I also offered these governance suggestions:

• Review the council conduct component of the governance plan. Most high-performing councils agree on such standards of behavior at meetings as treating each other and the staff with respect, not surprising staff at the meetings, and asking the manager questions in advance. If these are not in the plan, approach the mayor about revising the document.
• Once the behavior standard is set, provide the mayor and council with the necessary training to be able to exercise enforcement of the standard. It is likely they are as chagrined as the manager about the behavior and would welcome alternatives as well.

The Outcome

When I saw my colleague next, he said the elected official had resigned his position. After a high five, I asked why, and found out the member had a chance to take over a family operation in his hometown.

My opinion on this type of situation is that when you take the high road, life usually works out.