How to turn underperforming employees around.

Many teams in the workplace can be affected by underperformers, employees whose work falls below average or below expectations. Underperformers act as a ‘weak link’ in the team and this can create a range of challenges for team leaders, affecting other members of the team and the company overall.

What are the reasons for underperformance?

There are many reasons an employee’s performance might not be meeting expectations. These include:

• Low morale in the workplace or poor work environment
• Interpersonal differences within the team or with management
• Lack of understanding of expectations, standards, rules and workplace policies
• Lack of personal motivation or job satisfaction
• A mis-match between the employee’s capability and the requirements of their role
• Lack of performance-related feedback, so the employee doesn’t know whether they are doing a good job

If the underperformer is in probation, this is a warning sign that they are potentially not going to work out longterm, whether this is down to competence or motivation in the role. For employees that have performed well in their tenure at the company, an investigation into the root cause of the performance issues and what can be done to improve things is needed.

How do we identify underperformance?

Underperformance can include unsatisfactory work performance, inappropriate behaviour at work which can include negative or disruptive behaviour, and non-compliance with policies, rules and procedures.

It can be tricky to deal with an underperformer in your team, but consider the cost of not doing anything about it. Here are just a few of the things which can be impacted by an underperforming employee:

• Productivity: One of the more obvious signs of underperformance, employees not meeting the requirements of their role are unlikely to match the performance of their colleagues, resulting in less work being completed, or work of a lower quality.
• Customer satisfaction: Customer experience can suffer if an employee is underperforming, as they may be less attentive to the customer’s needs and less inclined to go the extra mile in providing great service. This can result in increased customer complaints and reduced customer loyalty if they feel they can get better service elsewhere.
• Team morale: A small number of underperforming employees can have a significant impact on the whole team. Colleagues can become stressed or resentful about taking on additional work to cover the substandard performance of their colleague, and team dynamics can suffer as a result. What’s more, if underperforming colleagues are taking up more of their manager’s time, other members of the team can start to feel overlooked and underappreciated.
• The bottom line: With the risk of reduced customer satisfaction and lower productivity, underperforming employees have the power to affect the company’s bottom line.

4 steps to manage underperformance

1. Identify the cause of underperformance.
   
   After identifying the main performance issues, you need to find out the root cause. Arrange a face-to-face meeting with the underperforming employee, ideally off-site, to get a better understanding of the situation. It’s important to have an open and honest dialogue; share your findings, giving examples of where their performance is not meeting expectations. Listen to what the employee has to say – encourage them to be honest and share any issues they are having in the workplace which are affecting their ability to do the job. Discuss whether the employee has the right tools and resources, along with the necessary training to perform their role. Additionally, try to find out if they are facing any issues at work such as bullying or difficulties like illness or stress, and if so, what you can do to help.
   
   
2. Set expectations and provide the right resources.
   
   It’s really important for the employees to be clear about the expectations of their performance, and any goals or targets in place. Set them up for success by re-communicating these – it might have been missed during onboarding or forgotten over time.
   
   Ensure they have the right resources and time to carry out their work. Along with work equipment, this could include additional training sessions or a period of shadowing experienced colleagues to show how the job should be done.
   
   
3. Find solutions together.
   
   Create a performance improvement plan – also known as a performance action plan. A performance improvement plan is a tool to give an underperforming employee the opportunity to succeed. In order to get their buy-in and commitment, the plan should be clearly communicated and agreed with the employee.
   
   

   The Performance Improvement Plan (PIP) should contain:

   • SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time-bound) objectives
   • A specific timeline for completion of the plan.
   
   

   Once the plan is in place, progress should be monitored, with regular feedback and support where needed. PIPs usually last 30, 60 or 90 days, depending on how long it would reasonably take to improve the issues.

   
   
4. Recognise progress.
   
   Don’t underestimate the power of positive feedback - meaningful praise will be appreciated by your employee and will help to keep them motivated. A simple “well done” or “thank you” can go a long way in showing an employee their efforts and progress have been noticed.

What if improvements don’t happen?

Sometimes improvements don’t happen despite your best efforts. Ultimately, the employee may not be completely happy, or fully competent, in their role and you will need to consider next steps such as a formal referral to HR, or letting the underperformer go. However the steps above should give you the best chance of successfully turning around the underperformer in your team and setting them up for success in their role.