Proceed With Caution...
Until recently I have been able to count on an employee whom I supervise to keep me in the loop of what's going on with her co-workers. Sometimes when I'm having a problem with another employee, I bounce ideas off of her because I trust her and value her opinion. She's become friends with a newer employee who has some performance issues and now seems reluctant to discuss that co-worker's problems with me. I think their friendship is getting in the way of her job but I'm not sure what to do about it.
While it can be tempting to use your subordinate to get the "scoop" about her peers, discussing issues with her about people she doesn't supervise can be a dangerous management practice. Trusted, experienced employees can be a valuable resource for managers but when it comes to performance issues, proceed with caution.
Solicit information not opinions: It's one thing to ask an employee if a co-worker was at his desk during a certain time and very different to ask if he spends too much time socializing. Opinions are colored by many things, not the least of which is the employee's biases and the relationship between the employees. Asking for opinions and treating them as information puts you at risk for misinterpretations and misunderstandings.
Address performance issues directly with the involved employee: The way to develop your objective perspective of the problem and determine corrective action is to go straight to the source — the employee with whom there is a problem.
Relying on the opinions of another employee may lead to flawed judgments and a course of action that is less likely to result in performance improvement.
Protect confidential information: Discussing an employee's performance with a co-worker puts that co-worker in the awkward position of having information that is unwanted and/or unwarranted.
Sharing information about an employee to another employee who does not have a legitimate need to know the information and would not have access to it otherwise can also be a violation of the law.
Problem-solve with an appropriate person: Ask your boss or someone from human resources for help, or talk with your peers. Those who are in similar roles as you are usually excellent resources because they have likely dealt with similar situations.
Deal with performance issues properly to avoid putting your employees, or yourself, in a difficult position.
