Tough Employee Performance Conversation?

Managing employee performance is no joke. It’s hard and often managers find themselves good and stuck…

You are now inclined to: (Choose all that apply. Be honest.)

• Fume that the employee is not respecting your authority
• Hope the problem resolves on its own because you don’t want to have to be mean
• Wonder if they know something you don’t know
• Consult with your boss, your colleague, your HR person, your cat regarding how annoying it is
• In front of the whole team yell loudly “Can someone help employee figure out how to do their job properly?”
• At the next team meeting say “Hey, just a reminder that when we do the thing it needs to be done this way so that everything works right.”
• Say in a one on one conversation “Hey, I’ve noticed this is the third time I’ve corrected your approach on this. What gives?”

Look. Managing Employee Performance is Hard.

Good performance management takes time, energy, focus, courage, fortitude, specificity, empathy, patience…I could go on. It’s true. It can be hard. But we tend to make it harder on ourselves as people managers and HR leaders than we have to.

Spinach in Your Teeth

Think about the friends you have who would tell you that you have spinach in your teeth – or one of those poppy seeds from the bagel breakfast meeting you both just came from. (Wistfully thinks of pre-pandemic breakfast meetings…OK FOCUS!) That friend sees the poppy seed. Knows that’s not how you want to show up. Takes you aside and says “Dude. Poppy seed. On your left. Top incisor. [Inspects] Yes! You got it. You’re good. This is performance management. It is embarrassing and anxiety causing – especially if there’s an urgent deadline or if there’s been a great deal of conversation with others without this important information since the bagel incident). It is also kind, helpful, specific, supportive and goal oriented.

A Performance Management Format You Can Use

• I’ve noticed (the current performance/behavior/attitude)
• What we need is (the correct/better/more effective performance)
• The current performance is impacting (quality/morale/credibility)
• You need to close the gap (urgently/over time/by next Tuesday)
• How can I help?

A Tip for More Human (and Humane) Performance Management

Get figuratively (and literally if it’s not super weird) on the same side of the table. A football or dance of tennis coach will sit down with the athlete on the same side of the table. The coach and the athlete together will then watch a video of the practice, discuss what they see, discuss what they hope to achieve and discuss how to close the gap. It’s a beautiful thing. Be like coach.

Performance Management Guidance

Hard to say what you need to say? Here is a toolbox (find below video) of actual words to use in all kinds of performance management situations and …

Here is a mini coaching session on management. It’s free. No one should have to struggle to figure out management and human resources leadership but good mentorship is hard to find.

These are the kinds of awesome tools and approaches our members learn in UPschool and my goal is for you to be able to build the most confident, inspired and contributing version of yourself. Won’t you join us? Membership is half price through 2020. For year round management expertise, live coaching and resources join UPschool today.