Every manager would have had to manage persons who think their performance is great, but are barely adequate. It is one of the most draining performances faced.
What causes this gap in performance mismatch between the employees' output and their perception.
One aspect could be he is not receiving the report from his manager to correct, develop and improve. He may not have the required resources. many of them may not know they are struggling. It is necessary to give timely feedback to the team member who could thrive if given proper feedback.
More dangerous is the team leader who accepts substandard work. This may cause other skilled employees to feel demotivated. However, as a manager, if you have identified the reason for underperformance of the member's lack of awareness, the following would help correct the problem.
Be clear about expectations
Be clear on what is expected from the employee and convey the same unambiguously. Also where required explain the metrics of performance evaluation and the basis for it. Have milestone assessments and reviews regularly so that there is clarity on the performance.
Provide resources and support
Many times employees require mentoring, leadership and strong supervision to realise their potential especially when they are new to the position. If they are lacking in certain skill required to be effective and they may not even realise this insufficiency.
Evaluate if you are ready to invest time in a person
You must be prepared to invest sufficient time with your employees to help them develop, become competent and grow in the work assigned to them. Keep an eye on the workload of the employee and redistribute the work if it is affecting the performance.
Evaluate if will accept help.
It is difficult to pretend success on an ongoing basis. There may be instances where employees may fail to recognise that they are not performing in the work assigned and need help. This may turn out detrimental to the team especially if his failures are attributed to other causes and there is no realisation that the problem lies on self.
Target praise.
When a team member delivers work of high quality, it is important to praise them. At the same time discuss the areas they can improve upon. Make clear the expectations and why it is required. This is a better chance of getting the performance or behaviours that are required.
Helping an underperformer be more realistic requires a lot of involvement. Understanding the underlying causes of underperformance will help you determine what support they need to improve.
Managing an Underperformer Who Thinks They’re Doing Great
by Liz Kislik HBR 2020/12
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