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How to
Resolve Serious Performance Problems
(All material on
yourofficecoach.com is copyrighted to Marie G. McIntyre. All
rights reserved.)
As a manager, you need
to differentiate between employee problems that simply call for a
coaching conversation and those that require a corrective action
discussion. Corrective action should only be taken for serious
performance issues. These occur when an employee either exhibits
behavior that cannot be tolerated or does not live up to agreements made
in previous coaching sessions.
Corrective action
discussions must be firm and direct – but not punishing – and the tone
should be adult-to-adult, not parent-to-child. The manager must clearly
indicate that correcting the situation is the employee’s
responsibility, not the manager’s. Consequences of continued
performance problems should be determined before the discussion and
clearly explained to the employee. These conversations should always be
held in private.
A “road map” for a
successful corrective action discussion can be found in the following
A-B-C-D-E-F formula:
§
Awareness
of the problem:
First, you must clearly describe the difficulties caused by the
performance problem, because troublesome employees are sometimes unaware
of the effects of their behavior. Let the employee know that these
problems now have to stop. If the employee starts to argue, indicate
that this is not a debatable issue.
§
Behavioral
expectations:
Next, specifically describe the improvement that you expect and what
“good performance” will look like. For example, don’t just ask the
employee to “be more cooperative” – tell him specifically how, when, and
with whom he is expected to cooperate. Give examples to illustrate your
points. Make it clear that these changes need to take place
immediately.
§
Clear
consequences:
If poor performance continues, then something unpleasant needs to happen
to the employee. Before this conversation, you should have agreed with
your own boss on what these consequences will be. Consequences can
range from a change in work assignment to a demotion to termination.
Tell the employee exactly what will happen next if he fails to improve.
§
Decision
to change:
You must now ask the employee to make a decision: is she able and
willing to change her behavior? This is not a rhetorical question or a
gimmick. She really needs to consider whether change is possible. If
necessary, she can think about it overnight and give you her decision
the following day. If she decides that change is not possible, then she
should be given a period of time in which to find another job.
§
Employee
involvement:
If the employee agrees to change, then she needs to create an action
plan. Exactly how is she going to meet the expectations that you have
outlined? Ask her to put the action plan in writing. Be sure that she
is specific about how she plans to change her behavior.
§
Follow
up:
Set a time to meet with the employee to assess progress. If he’s doing
well, praise his improvement and express appreciation for his efforts.
But if no significant change occurs, then enforce the consequences. For
this process to work, you must follow through. If you don’t, you
send the message that it doesn’t really matter. And you’ll be right
back where you started.
It’s been said that “A
paycheck doesn’t buy someone’s soul, but it does rent their behavior.”
With serious performance issues, you need to change the terms of your
“rental agreement” as quickly as possible! Poor performers not only
drain their manager’s energy, but also hurt the morale of good
employees. Resolving these problems requires some time and attention,
but in the long run, it’s definitely worth the effort.
Copyright
YourOfficeCoach.com, 2006. All rights reserved. |
