How should underperformance be managed?

The first step for any manager is to ascertain that performance issues exist and to do so in a timely way. It’s critical to catch any issues early, to give the employee an opportunity to rectify and improve their performance and before resentment sets in on behalf of any team members carrying their weight. Destructive company culture will not serve any organisation well. An effective manager will investigate what’s happening, note evidence relating to the employee’s underperformance and organise a meeting with them to find out if there is a reason why they aren’t performing. During the meeting, it’s important to remember that the manager presents the facts and seeks to understand the reasons for the poor performance. They need to ensure the employee understands the serious negative consequences of their failure to perform, and if necessary, puts the employee on a performance improvement plan to support them meet the role requirements which should be regularly reviewed.

Performance management involves difficult and uncomfortable conversations, both in the identification of the issue, raising it with the employee and the ongoing feedback and management. All the while, the manager needs to provide encouragement, feedback and support with the aim of improving the employee’s performance. If the employee’s performance does not improve, it is reasonable to commence a disciplinary process (issuing of formal warnings) alongside the performance improvement plan. The employee must be given every reasonable opportunity to improve and have been advised that failure to improve to the required standard could result in the termination of their employment. The key for any employer is to document every conversation and every piece of evidence, in order that if required, procedural fairness can be demonstrated.

If an organisation decides to let go of an employee whether it is due to underperformance or the result of a redundancy, it’s rarely comfortable or easy. Leadership teams do well to remember the human side to an employee no longer having a job but one thing’s for sure: there are no short cuts to difficult conversations - redundancy and dismissal due to poor performance should never be used interchangeably.