Dealing with performers and non-performers

MANAGERS must learn to differentiate between good and poor performance. There must be a system of rewarding outstanding performers and dealing with unacceptable performance. Rewards tend to motivate people to give their utmost. Sanctions, however, tend to be effective only if the manager first helps the employee improve his/her performance.

Helping/hindering factors

There are a number of factors that help or hinder employees from delivering an excellent level of performance.

The employee experience is shaped by a confluence of factors — including the work itself, company culture, co-workers’ attitudes, management expectations, the employee’s skills and motivation, etc. These variables interact with each other and affect one’s performance. Managers, particularly human resources (HR) managers, must be able to assess these factors in order to improve the performance of their people. Managers must constantly take the pulse of their employees on these variables, continue to capacitate their people and motivate them well.

Unbeknownst to some managers, poor performance can be due to the management’s fault. The managers and HR control the hiring process, but sometimes they just do not hire the right person for the job. Some managers are often impressed during the interview, even if the job applicant does not actually have the right skills. Sometimes, employees are not clarified on their roles during the onboarding process. Managers do not always observe how employees perform, and fail to motivate their employees or address the boredom of doing repetitive tasks.

Employees may not be able to turn in an acceptable level of performance for a variety of reasons related to poor training or personal difficulties. They are more productive if they have the skills and tools, the motivation to perform, and the freedom to think, act, focus and work without pressure from anybody.

Unacceptable performance is mostly due to either lack of skills or lack of motivation. Some employees do not admit that they don’t have the skills and simply “fake it till you make it.” Sometimes, too, they have personal problems that take away their concentration from work, or do not understand their bosses’ instructions. Some simply don’t like their bosses.

Handling non-performers

Many managers are not trained to break the bad news. It is also not in our culture to do it. That’s the main reason why performance appraisals never follow the typical Bell Curve. Here are a few tips for managers on handling poor performers.

– Monitor performance. Periodically monitor your employee’s performance, especially if the employee is new. Get trained on how to observe, monitor, measure and evaluate subordinates’ performance as objectively as possible. Watch out for red flags.

– Establish the performance issue. Establish what exactly is wrong with the employee’s performance – in terms of the results, and the way the results were secured. Always refer to the plan and the standards. Make sure the employee sees it the way you do.

– Discuss the issue with the employee. Discuss performance issues with the employee in a non-threatening manner. The purpose should be to correct non-conformance with the plans or standards, and to improve employee and organizational performance.

– Understand the reasons. Sometimes, solutions are easier identified if you knew the reasons why the unacceptable level of performance occurred. Don’t threaten, but encourage, the employee to tell the truth.

– Plan with the employee for improvement. Jointly develop with the employee a plan to correct the non-conformance or improve the performance. Be supportive. If the employee needs more training, arrange if you could have it soonest and for free. If the employee has personal problems, see how you or the company could help the employee find solutions to the problem.

– Monitor the improvement. Periodically observe, monitor and measure the performance. Guide the employee in doing the assigned tasks. Focus on the results and the behaviors that must be demonstrated while the employee is performing.

– Implement the consequence. If the employee has in fact improved, you have to show a more supportive attitude. You might even want to recommend a reward for the employee’s improvement and the achievement of the assigned goals. If despite your help the employee fails to improve, get advice from HR and your boss on how to apply due process to let the employee explore other employment possibilities elsewhere.

Rewards

Rewards refer to a system of recognizing employees’ contributions to the achievement of organizational goals. Rewards could be either monetary or non-monetary in nature. Generally, rewards systems are part of a compelling Employee Value Proposition (EVP). Some organizations hint about it in statements like “As the organization grows, so shall the employees.”

Rewards must be tied up with employee and organizational performance. Otherwise, across-the-board rewards tend to cultivate a culture of entitlement, which does not foster excellence. Policies and practices on rewards have profound consequences on both 1) employee satisfaction, behavior and performance; and 2) organizational performance, competitiveness, viability and sustainability.

There are a number of bad rewards that don’t work to support the development of a high-performing organization. Here are a few of them:

– Across-the-board salary increases. Rewards should be selective and given to those who excel. Giving across-the-board salary increases to recognize performance will be counter-productive to a culture of excellence. You’ll send the wrong message — that in your organization, people don’t have to perform, as non-performers will get the same rewards as the high-performers. That kills initiative and motivation.

– Annual merit increases. This practice tends to unduly increase the organization’s fixed costs. If somebody performs well this year and you give him/her a merit pay increase, you cannot take that back next year even if he/she no longer performs well.

– Paying for seniority, longevity or loyalty. These are not compensable factors. You can “recognize” them, but it is not good HR practice to “pay” them. Recognition can be in monetary or non-monetary form, but don’t tuck it into the basic salary, as this will simply distort the salary structure and the real value of the jobs. You’ll have a 52-year old messenger with a higher base pay than a 25-year old manager.

– Promoting simply on the basis of performance. If you simply promote your star salesman to be the sales manager, you could lose a star salesman and acquire a lousy sales manager. Selling is a different job from managing sales. Doing that also easily gets people to their level of incompetence faster than necessary. Add other criteria for promotion — competence, character, potential, suitability for the job, and other X factors and intangibles that persons bring to the job.

A high-performing organization is one where motivated employees and teams contribute to the achievement of organizational goals and get equitable rewards and recognition, and managers help laggards transform into performers, even as they keep raising the bar.

Inspirational speaker and writer Brian Tracy said, “Leaders set high standards, refuse to tolerate mediocrity or poor performance.”

Ernie Cecilia is the chairman of the Human Capital Committee and the Publication Committee of the American Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines (AmCham); chairman of the Employers Confederation of the Philippines’ (ECOP’s) TWG on Labor Policy and Social Issues; and past president of the People Management Association of the Philippines (PMAP). He can be reached at [email protected]