Dealing with an underperforming employee who misses the mark. How can you turn their performance around?

Dealing with an underperforming employee requires a strategic and empathetic approach. Address performance issues promptly and constructively. Begin by having an open, honest conversation to understand the root causes of their underperformance. Provide clear, achievable goals and offer regular feedback and support. Invest in their development through training and mentoring. Recognize and appreciate their improvements, no matter how small. By fostering a supportive environment and showing confidence in their ability to improve, you can motivate the employee to reach their potential and contribute effectively to the team.

Don't delay! As soon as performance starts slipping, address it! Very often there is a circumstance outside of work that is taking the employee's attention and focus away from their job. If there are resources the company offers that can help the employee's personal situation, offer them. If you wait, hoping things get better, the employee may perceive you don't care, or may fall into bad habits that continue much longer than throughout their personal crisis. Be sure to address specifics about their work performance that need improvement and not attack them as a person. Be honest and clear offering support and any tools needed.

Abordar, con empatía y sutileza, considerando que somos personas, para asi, poder conectar con la persona, y algo que siempre intentamos evitar, pero que tenemos que hacer frente, que es, confrontar la situación.

Many times, employees' performance is less than optimal due to poor time management skills. Setting goals and offering organizational skills training and time management training/ideas may be all they need. Follow up and help keep the employee moving forward.

Previo al establecimiento de objetivos y una vez que los problemas hayan sido aclarados, es importante identificar las motivaciones del trabajador y su proyección a futuro, para sentar las bases de las acciones a seguir. En caso de que desee seguir formando parte del equipo, debemos solventar y traducir su compromiso en objetivos (SMART) e indicadores (KPI), sumando esfuerzos conjuntos -cada uno desde su rol- con sus respectivos compromisos y responsabilidades. Una buena oportunidad, sería identificar aspiraciones de desarrollo por parte del trabajador dentro de la organización, ya que es un reflejo de su POTENCIAL y este se puede cruzar con su DESEMPEÑO por medio de una matriz (NINE BOX)

El proceso de mentoría bien ejecutado es una gran opción, ya que es útil para abordar múltiples problemas vinculados a la motivación, desempeño, proyección y permanencia dentro de la organización. En mi experiencia es uno de los procesos de mayor impacto que puedes realizar, además de que en sí misma es una práctica de reconocimiento que no está asociada directamente a una recompensa económica o material 🫱🏻🫲🏼✨

If the progress you expect is not being achieved, you must assess whether the employee is serious about improving, or if this employee has lost interest in the job and is not planning to improve. You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make them drink. They have to want to help themselves and want to improve. Clear discussions about the employee's career plan may be in order and perhaps there is another job in the organization that is a better fit for the employee's skills and interests.

We never seem to do enough to recognize and appreciate all of the positive things employees contribute. We can quickly point out the negatives, but it takes a conscientious effort to talk about the positives. Practice doing this everyday with your employees, not just the ones that need performance improvements. It will make a difference in their attitudes and their work performance. Be sure to be genuine and specific about the positive contribution they made.

Often managers struggle in articulating what good looks like, because they have not defined the purpose of the role clearly. Imagine if the member on the team isn’t giving everyone else a leverage and is rather drawing on their energies and efforts. An open discussion is warranted to ensure possible causes can be identified and addressed. Many times it isn’t about competence but is a fit discussion - does the role in question excite the incumbent, or do they see the role fitting in their career journey. I believe an open honest discussion saves time and emotions and often beneficial in the long run.

Many times we try to take a square peg and fit it into a round hole. If the employee is not happy with their current job, it will show up in their performance. This needs to be discussed and ruled out before spending a tremendous amount of effort on improving their performance. Getting them into the correct job that fits their skillset and interests, may be the best answer. If this isn't the case, patience is needed while nurturing the employee along the improvement pathway with consistent feedback and training. Don't forget to set an end date on your goals, or you may be on this journey far longer than you can afford.

In our companies, we fundamentally need to create supportive and nurturing environments. By setting clear goals, providing regular feedback, fostering individual strengths, and offering development opportunities, leaders enhance the motivation of their employees.