Naturally, all businesses are required to deal with the issue of low performers. It is an inevitability of all work places as low performers are often left to slip into lower and lower performing roles while high performers take on their tasks. In fact, it’s possible that having low performers within the office may cost more than just paying them to stay at home due to the effects they cause on the office, others productivity and overall team morale.
Low performers slowly creep into the territory with gradual steps as opposed to a direct and immediate crossover. The warning signs to look out for include:
- Tasks are done, but not always on time.
- They are late more often, or call in sick more frequently.
- They are often talking to others rather than being productive.
Eventually, the manager will shift their tasks to others and the low performer is left to be a drain on company productivity and resources. However, most low performers were not always low performers. Before a manager fires the employee, here are five steps that can help change their performance:
Identification — Identify the problems that you have with low performers and set standards to deal with them. Time away, productivity, lateness and other performance standards should be clearly defined. It should be noted that they should be written positively rather than their negative mentions above.
Communication — Communicating directly with low performers to discuss the issues with them directly is important. Setting the expectations on future performance should be the forefront of the conversation. Make it clear to them that everyone is being tracked and it is important that they meet or exceed these basic standards. Offer coaching courses if it would be beneficial to the task.
Execution — Follow up on the performance expectations with regular feedback and evaluations. If the low performer is not meeting the expectations of the company, communicating with them directly may assist. In some cases, low performers simply will never perform any better, in which case the documentation, evaluations and feedback will serve to allow you to let them go in the future.
Documentation — Firing people can be a difficult task and often managers will procrastinate the job, especially with employees who have been with the company for many years. Documenting the ongoing low performance may assist in making the final decision to let the employee go. Without documentation, it is simply too easy to ignore the problem.
Action — Having followed the first four steps, the final step is much easier to enact. With a low performer who is only slowing the rest of the company down, the final act of letting them go is the best decision for the company and other employees.
The best way to avoid hiring low performers is knowing whom you are hiring before they have been hired. Assessments are a great way to determine their overall potential and how they will be within the organization.