Good employers are those who make good employees become better people, equipping their teams for success in life.
But employers can often get too caught up in day to day duties and new technology that they forget to do the basics. This can lead to staff underperformance.
Once staff become complacent and realise they aren’t being held accountable it can be very detrimental to a business.
Dealing with underperformance can be challenging and confronting, but it does need to be addressed. Managers need clear procedures, organisational support and the courage and willingness to manage the issue.
To avoid underperformance, it is important to have a clear system. Best practice employers are aware that ineffective performance management can dramatically reduce the level of performance in a workplace. Additionally, employees that perform well can lose motivation if they have to carry the burden of poor performing colleagues.
The thing is, employees want to be informed. They want their opinions to matter, be involved in creating changes and improvements, and want to be acknowledged for their efforts.
Here are some tips for managing underperformance:
• Use progressive discipline. Help employees understand that their performance is not up to standard through regular feedback.
• Keep records of your informal and formal discussions, so you have evidence of your attempts to improve the situation.
• Issue appropriate warnings. It may be difficult to prove that an employee is underperforming if they have been doing the same job for a long time without criticism or warning.
• Provide opportunities to improve. Keep your employees’ skills fresh and up to date by providing appropriate training and support.
• Assess your management style. Any good manager audits their own performance. Ask yourself, ‘Am I managing performance in the right way?’
