Last week a manager at a member company told me, “We’re having trouble making consistent decisions about terminating staff. How do you know when you’re overinvesting in one person, to the detriment of the rest of the staff, and you should just let someone go?”
The first thought that struck me? Gardening.
I have a bit of a green thumb … not a “should’ve been a horticulturist” green thumb, but it’s pretty good.
And this time of year is prime season to decide “grow it, or get rid of it” with my plantings. Some are thriving, others are obviously goners, and some reside in between. These plantings may do well with some nurturing, or may be too much trouble, and I need to decide quickly, lest they cripple their soil-mates.
Now, this particular manager finds himself in a similar situation with his staff. Managers need to invest energy into diagnosing and addressing staff members’ behaviors in order to improve performance, and while it’s certainly important to dedicate time and energy to coaching and upskilling, it’s important to know how much is too much.
Take it from me, it’s not easy to come to this conclusion, given how much investment it takes just to get folks through intro training and out to the floor. You want everyone to succeed & no one to fail. Plus, many companies still find themselves in hiring freezes so an open position may not be filled for weeks or months! Inevitably, though, you’re going to have to address these difficult situations. And thankfully, there’s some good guidance to lend a hand.
CCC has profiled two members who take slightly different approaches to this dilemma, and in both situations the message is clear: Don’t overinvest in underperformers.
The first, a travel and leisure company, chooses a route that:
- Begins by establishing an agreed upon plan to improve performance.
- Then, intensely coach underperforming staff for a short period (1-2 months). This coaching may be multiple face-to-face sessions and side-by-side coaching in the same week for the duration of the month or two.
- Finally, if performance doesn’t improve, it’s time to send that rep packing.
The second profiled company, from the financial services industry, takes this approach:
- Consistently monitor rep performance & coach everyone.
- But, don’t give the lion’s share of coaching to low-performers because their performance often doesn’t improve. Coach them, but not too much.
- After a given period of time (say 2-3 months) in “under-performance” status, show that rep the door.
Regardless of which approach to take, the more nurturing approach, or the “put up, or shut up” approach, it’s important to clearly define your strategy and be consistent in its application.
What’s your strategy with low performers? Does it work well? Share it with us by clicking here.
CCC Members, Click here for the travel & Leisure member’s approach & here for the Financial Services member’s approach. Or click here if you want to chat about your current situation and how we can help.
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