Dear Leah,
I'm Chief Human Resources Officer dealing with our company's most profitable salesperson who's also our biggest HR nightmare.
This person - let's call them Jordan - brings in 40% of our revenue but treats colleagues appallingly.
Jordan screams at support staff, makes inappropriate comments to junior employees, and has created such a hostile environment that three people have requested transfers away from their team. The latest incident involved Jordan throwing documents at an intern during a client presentation.
When I raised this with our CEO, the response was "Jordan pays everyone's salaries - we need to work around his... intensity."
Our legal team is warning about potential lawsuits, our culture survey results are tanking, and good people are leaving. But Jordan's clients adore him and we're genuinely worried about losing £8 million in annual revenue.
How do I protect our people without destroying our bottom line?
- Held Hostage
Dear Held Hostage,
You're not dealing with a "difficult personality" - you're managing someone who's learned they can abuse people without consequences because they make money. This isn't sustainable, and it's costing you far more than you realise.
DIAGNOSIS:
Jordan has created a protection racket where their financial value shields them from basic professional standards. Your CEO has accidentally signalled that revenue excuses everything, which means Jordan keeps escalating because there are no boundaries.
THE ROOT OF THE PROBLEM:
You're measuring Jordan's value wrong. Yes, they bring in £8 million, but you're not calculating the cost of their behaviour - recruitment expenses, legal risks, productivity loss from stressed teams, and the cultural damage that drives away other high performers.
THE PATH TO RESOLVING IT:
Present the CEO with the true cost analysis, including legal liability exposure. Then give Jordan a clear choice: intensive coaching with measurable behaviour changes within 90 days, or managed exit with client transition planning.
The clients who "adore" Jordan are buying your product, not Jordan's personality - most can be retained with proper relationship management.
YOUR ROLE GOING FORWARD:
Document everything for legal protection and performance management
Build the business case that shows toxic behaviour is expensive, not profitable
Develop client transition plans so you're not held hostage by relationships
Remember: companies that let high performers abuse people eventually lose both high performers and good people
Sometimes the most profitable thing you can do is teach your golden goose better table manners.
