If you manage someone whose attendance, performance, or behaviour has changed in ways that concern you, and you suspect substance use may be part of it, you are likely already aware that this is not a conversation with an easy script. It's still one worth having, and having sooner rather than later.
Stick to what you've actually observed
The most useful, and safest, version of this conversation focuses entirely on specific, observable facts: missed deadlines, unexplained absences, changes in behaviour that are affecting the team, rather than on speculation about what's causing them. You are not there to diagnose anyone. You are there to name a pattern that's affecting work, and to ask what support might help.
Lead with concern, not accusation
A conversation that opens with an assumption already made tends to produce defensiveness before anything useful can be said. One that opens with genuine concern, backed by specific examples, leaves far more room for an honest response, and for the employee to feel like the conversation is actually about them, not about building a case against them.
Know what you can actually offer
Before the conversation happens, it helps to know what your organisation can genuinely provide: an employee assistance programme, a referral pathway, or simply flexibility while someone seeks help. Raising a concern without anything to point toward afterward can leave an employee feeling exposed with nowhere to go, which helps no one.
You don't have to do this without guidance
Managers and HR teams can speak to us confidentially before this conversation ever happens, to think through what to say, what your organisation's policy actually allows for, and when it's time to involve HR directly. Getting this right the first time matters, both for the employee and for how safely the situation is handled from here.
