Discussing Performance Improvement Plans With Employees

You might not want performance conversations to be personal, but trust me, they are very personal to your employees. Their livelihood is at stake. Their capability is in question. The consequences are incredibly high. My job is to stay calm and bring structure to it. Otherwise, it can become a tangled mess. Ideally, I’ve set clear expectations upfront. And they’ve been getting feedback from me at a regular clip. But sometimes, we must step back and ask, “Where are we?” Here's how I structure those conversations: 📌 My first question: "Do they see it?" Do they appreciate what’s needed to meet or beat expectations? Do they understand how and why they’re coming up short? If "No," you need to get them there. How? Asking them to self-assess can give me useful intel. You can also finesse this by getting others to provide feedback. Different words can often break through. If they do see it... 📌 "Do they want to fix it?" If the answer is "No," the path becomes painfully obvious. You can’t have people in the role that don’t want to meet it. And people willingly leaving their role is easiest. How? Finesse it by previewing the severance or exit package. Identify roles they might thrive in. Chances are they're frustrated, too. Or if they’re a great fit in the wrong role, you can discuss a trial elsewhere in the org. Finally, if they see it and want to fix it... 📌 “Do they know how?” If not, this is a great place to coach. Use questions to guide them in the direction you need. If they write the map, they tend to follow it. If they know how and are not improving, there are two possibilities: -> They’re not making the change. -> They’re making it, and it’s not helping. In either case, the fair choice for your team and for them is likely an exit. These conversations are always challenging. But they're nearly impossible when we don't have a plan. You can have conversations, or you can lead them. In moments of high emotion, clear is kind. If you found this post helpful: - Please repost ♻️ to help other leaders - Follow Dave Kline 🔔 for more posts like it - Subscribe to my MGMT Playbook 📕 (in bio) Join 30K leaders and get access to 75 practical playbooks + working templates for every challenging management moment.

𝗔𝗿𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗴𝗴𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗴𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝘁𝗼 𝗮𝗻 𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗲𝗿 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝗼𝗳 𝗵𝘂𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝗿 𝗱𝗲𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘇𝗶𝗻𝗴? Follow this 5-step framework to get magical results. 𝗟𝗲𝘁 𝗺𝗲 𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗮 𝗰𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝘂𝗱𝘆 of my client for your easy understanding: Meet Mark, a team leader in a growing tech company. One of his top employees, 𝗝𝗮𝗻𝗲, 𝘄𝗮𝘀𝗻’𝘁 𝗺𝗲𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀. 𝗦𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝗱𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀, avoided communication, and wasn’t engaged in team discussions. 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝗸 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗮𝗳𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗻𝘁 her because he didn’t want to demoralize her or cause conflict. However, the longer he waited, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝘀𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 𝗴𝗼𝘁. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗺’𝘀 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗱𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗱, and Jane’s career progress stalled. 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝗸 𝗲𝗻𝗿𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗻 𝗰𝗼𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱. 𝗛𝗲𝗿𝗲’𝘀 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗶𝗱 𝗶𝘁: 𝟭) 𝗦𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗖𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗘𝘅𝗮𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲: Mark told Jane, “We need to complete the project by next Friday. Let’s go over the steps to make sure everything’s clear.” 𝟮) 𝗚𝗶𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗙𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗘𝘅𝗮𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲: Instead of vague criticism, Mark said, “You missed last week's deadline. Let’s figure out why and prevent this next time.” 𝟯) 𝗔𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗟𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗘𝘅𝗮𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲: When Jane shared she was overwhelmed, Mark asked, “What support do you need to stay on track?” 𝟰) 𝗔𝗱𝗱𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗜𝘀𝘀𝘂𝗲𝘀 𝗗𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗹𝘆 𝗘𝘅𝗮𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲: “We need to address the missed deadlines, Jane. Let’s talk about what’s causing this so we can fix it together.” 𝟱) 𝗖𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗔𝗰𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗘𝘅𝗮𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲: Mark said, “I’ll help you organize your tasks, but it’s crucial that you meet the deadlines we’ve set.” 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗪𝗮𝘀 𝗛𝗼𝗹𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝗸 𝗕𝗮𝗰𝗸? • Lack of Feedback Skills • Poor Communication Skills • Fear of Conflict • Low Team Morale 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗔𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗖𝗼𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗧𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝗰𝗼𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝗸 𝗺𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗸𝗶𝗹𝗹𝘀 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗶𝘀𝘀𝘂𝗲: • He set clear, measurable goals for Jane. • He started giving regular, constructive feedback. • He improved his listening skills to better understand Jane’s challenges. • He faced the issues directly with a calm, problem-solving mindset. • He held Jane accountable for her performance while providing support. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗢𝘂𝘁𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 • Jane began meeting deadlines and actively contributing to team discussions. • Team morale improved, and Mark became a more confident leader. 𝗣.𝗦. Ready to transform your leadership style and unlock your team’s full potential? 📩 Drop me a message, and let’s create a tailored strategy for you. #peakimpactmentorship #leadership #success #interviewtips #communication

Confronting an underperforming employee is never easy. Here’s my guide to make sure it doesn’t go off the rails. Schedule a one-on-one meeting with the employee. Send the invite at least one day in advance via email, using a generic title like “Discussion”. Write detailed notes on what you plan to cover in the meeting. Meeting tone: Once the meeting starts, avoid small talk and get down to the matter at hand immediately. Maintain a positive and constructive attitude.  Focus on the facts, the impact, and the solutions. Do not focus on the personalities, the emotions, or point fingers. The beats of the meeting: Open by stating that this is going to be a difficult conversation about their performance issues. Make it clear that the goal of this meeting is to find a way for them to improve. This sets the tone. Next, describe the circumstances that have made this discussion necessary. Be specific about actions, dates and times, and tell them what the impact of their underperformance has been on the business and other co-workers. If applicable, tell them exactly where they’ve violated your policies. Get the employee’s perspective: Do they feel they have the necessary time, support, and resources to perform their job? Has anything changed in the business that has an impact on the employee’s performance? Has anything changed outside of the business, like a personal issue or health problem? Be clear about your expectations: Be specific, e.g. “Your job starts at 8 a.m. from Monday through Friday. You should be at your desk and available to answer client calls by that time every business day.” Together with the employee, make a detailed action plan you both understand and agree on. Set specific steps, deadlines, and targets. Include what you will do to support them. You should both sign and date the document. Schedule several followup meetings to check in on their progress. Once you’re done, update your meeting notes to include everything you discussed. Follow up: Send a recap of the meeting and your agreed upon action plan to the employee immediately after the meeting. If you have any to-do items on your side, get through them ASAP. You want them feeling the urgency of the situation. From there, things will go in one of two directions: Hopefully, the situation will improve. If it does, give that employee recognition. Refer specifically to what they’ve accomplished. Sometimes, things don’t get better. At that point, it’s time to move towards parting ways. — I hope this helps. Thoughts on this process? Comment below!