As much as Jeff wanted to bring the discussion to a close and declare a victory, he had a nagging concern.

“So what about Nancy?” he asked, without any context.

“What do you mean?” Clare responded.

“I mean, when we have someone like her who's lacking in one of the three areas, what do we do about that?”

No one had a quick answer, so Jeff continued. “We know we're not just going to fire her. But how do we do our best to give her a chance to be a real team player?”

Clare offered a half-hearted suggestion. “Well, there are coaches I know who do one-on-one counseling.”

Bobby shook his head. “No, that doesn't usually work. It takes months and only isolates people. It seems like most of them just use it to prepare for their next job.”

“I'd have to agree,” said Jeff.

Clare didn't offer up an argument, but weighed in. “What we need is something more direct and actionable. Something that gives us a quick sense of whether she really wants to change or has the capacity for it.”

Jeff had an idea. “Hey, why don't we just interview her?”

“What do you mean?” Bobby was confused.

“Why don't I just sit down with Nancy and talk to her the way I talked to Ted?” Jeff didn't wait for a response. “If she doesn't want to be here, she'll probably make that clear. She might even decide to leave on her own.”

Bobby looked deflated. “Oh, I really don't want to lose anyone else.” Before Clare could pounce on him, he continued. “But if that's what needs to happen, I'm okay with it.”

Clare patted her colleague on the head.

Jeff continued. “I won't make it a witch hunt or anything. I'll just describe what we're trying to do with the culture, and see if she has the stomach for it.”

“And what if she says she's up for it?” Bobby asked. “How do we teach her to be smarter?”

“That's a high-class problem, my friend,” Clare announced. “If Attila the Hun walked into this office right now and convinced me that he really wanted to get better dealing with people, I know we could do it. Most training and development comes down to how much a person wants to change.”

Jeff hoped Nancy would be easier than Attila the Hun.