Frequently Asked Questions About Performance Problems
Last updated: June 10, 2021
Estimated reading time: 7 min
下面是一些我们经常听到的关于性能问题的问题。
How long should you give someone to improve after warning them?
Generally, weeks rather than months. Someone who is going to improve after a warning will usually start showing improvement right away—as long as you’ve provided clear enough feedback and support. Your exact timeframe will really depend on the nature of the problem and your capacity. Factors you should consider:
- Staff member’s learning style and prior growth
- How much feedback they have received on their performance on this issue
- The urgency/impact of the performance issue
- Your capacity to provide coaching and support
- Length/timing of training available
Most HR policies or union agreements will outline a process to follow. Where guidance isn’t available—and the problem isn’t causing immediate harm to others or the organization—an informal (verbal) warning might be followed up in one to three weeks, and a written performance improvement plan will typically cover four to six weeks, with check-ins along the way. If you’re not seeing significant improvement within six weeks, you will want to move to the next step of your progressive discipline plan.
What if the staff member has issues in their personal life that are affecting them at work (such as trouble at home, a sick family member, etc.)?
Start by expressing care and concern. Show genuine interest in what they’re dealing with outside of work, while emphasizing that it’s optional to share personal details. You can say, “I know there’s a lot going on in your life right now, so let’s figure out what we can do while you deal with this. Is there anything you’d like me to know?” Consider, too, that some seemingly personal issues are rooted in and/or exacerbated by structural oppression and marginalization. Aswe have recommended before, it’s important to acknowledge this, ask people what they need, and reprioritize when you can. During this conversation, give clear, direct feedback on the performance concern, its impact, and your expectations, even as you show empathy. Next, you’ll want to identify concrete adjustments or support:
- If a staff member has performed well up until now—and the problems are really more about circumstance than competency—the plan may focus on temporary adjustments while they get through a tough time. Giving honest feedback is still important to their development and ensures no surprises later if the problem continues.
- If the staff member has a history of performance issues, you’ll want to extend the same care and curiosity, while getting to the root of the bigger pattern and addressing the underlying problem. Assuming you have given them direct feedback before, consider whether it’s time for a formalperformance improvement plan．你可以说:“我理解(X)现在让你更难在工作中露面。我希望你能在这里成功，所以我想坦白地说，我在此之前就观察到了一些问题，不管你现在发生了什么。”身份明确，下一步合理。在个人或社会政治危机时期，您可能会临时调整他们的工作负载，并明确警告，您需要在特定的时间框架内看到性能改进。
Finally, if you know or suspect that their performance may have to do with health or mental health issues, it’s important to make reasonable accommodations. In these cases, you’ll want to check with your organization’s HR department and/or consult a lawyer.
What do I do when someone does great technical work but doesn’t seem to work well with others?
Too often, managers see issues like negativity or trouble getting along with others as separate from the work itself—when they’re not separate at all. It has an impact on the work and the team—and it’s your job to prevent a snowball effect. Most importantly, “trouble getting along,” can be a signal that there are issues of trust, belonging, or values alignment you need to look into.
Consider any bias that could be influencing how you or others perceive this staff member, or how they feel they’re being treated. Is there a pattern with regard to who’s considered difficult or abrasive? Could the difficulty collaborating be rooted in hidden assumptions orpreferences/traditionsabout how people work together? Are there aspects of your organizational culture that prize certain forms of relationship-building over others?
其次，确保明确角色和期望。这名员工可能只在他们角色的一部分表现良好——“做什么”而不是“如何做”。Make sure you haveclearly defined the role to include the approach(the mindsets, behaviors, values) you expect from this staff member. Approach is just as important as technical skill. Make these behaviors an explicit part of the performance standard and do the same for each member of your team. Give the staff member direct feedback about the impact of their behavior and what you need to see improved. Use ourCSAWapproach. Being able to say, “I need someone in this role who can maintain good relationships with other teams and approach new ideas with a sense of possibility and a can-do attitude. What will it take to get there?” will help your staff member understand what you expect, and help you figure out whether or not they’re willing to improve.
最后，如果您已经就您需要看到的改进给出了明确的反馈，但没有任何改变，那么不要害怕转向更正式的性能警告。
What should I do when someone isn’t meeting expectations, but I can’t pinpoint concrete things they messed up either?
在我们的指导工2022年世界杯名额作中，我们经常发现，当一个员工在工作的各个方面都做得不好时，经理们会陷入一种必须证明这个人做错了什么的感觉。在这些情况下，我们建议转变思路。首先，暂时不要考虑你的员工，而是考虑你真正需要这个人在这个角色上能够做什么。例如，如果你管理的公关总监擅长撰写问题简报，但不擅长赢得媒体报道，你应该专注于你真正需要的东西。如果你意识到你需要一个即使在艰难的环境中也能将你的信息传达给媒体的人，你就需要将其定义为角色的一部分，并评估他们是否能够培养这种技能。如果答案是否定的，那么这个职位可能并不适合你。你可能会说:“我认为你的优势在于更多的研究和写作。我听说很难让媒体报道我们的问题，但我在这个角色中需要的是，尽管存在这些挑战，但有人可以把我们的信息传达出去，因为我们的成员指望我们改变叙事。”通过从一个缺陷模型(“这就是您做错的地方”)转移到一个需求模型(“我们需要一个可以做ABC的人，这样我们就可以完成XYZ”)，您可以改变对话。尊重员工所做的工作，同时明确自己需要一些不同的东西。 Ask, “What ideas do you have to grow your skill in this area?” You may be able to craft a skill development plan together, or discover the staff member is simply interested in a role change to better match their existing strengths.
What if I know I need to let someone go, but my boss isn’t convinced?
Often in this situation, your boss isn’t convinced because they have been shielded from the impact of the low performance—you’ve fixed the person’s work before they have seen it or not shared sufficient details with them about the problems you’re seeing. Try to figure out what information you have that your manager doesn’t, and then convey that to them.
我最近提拔了一个人，他在之前的职位上技能很高，但现在似乎在新职位上很挣扎。我该怎么办?
Any new position has a learning curve, even for internal hires. From your seat as the manager, you want to discern whether the struggle is normal growing pains or if the staff member maybe isn’t a fit for the role after all. First, reflect on how well you communicated new role expectations and how well the onboarding process prepared them for the new responsibilities. Get their perspective on what’s been challenging and how prepared they feel for the new or higher-level competencies in this role. Communicate openly about what’s not working with an eye toward support and solutions. If you both agree the position is a good fit, create a plan to grow their skills through a combination of coaching, feedback, training, and observation with debriefing. If the staff member doesn’t have or isn’t interested in the must-have competencies for the role—and this didn’t really come up during hiring—acknowledge their strengths and move them toward a role where they can shine. With open conversation and your genuine support, these moves don’t have to feel like a demotion. (Also, circle back to improve the way youdefine and test for must-havesin your hiring/promotion process).
Check out the other resources in ourPerformance Problemsseries: