This resource provides masses of practical support and proven tools, techniques and skills to give your managers the confidence and ability to deal with poor performers in your organisation. This new training manual will equip your managers with the skills to quickly spot changes in behaviour and performance, and identify the reasons behind these changes.
Causes of poor performance are broken down into a framework in terms of willingness to work,and ability to perform required tasks. This framework enables your managers to objectively assess the under-performer, and identify steps to improve performance.
Part One of this resource provides 10 activities, outlining the processes involved in addressing different types of poor-performer situations. Simply tap into the exercises which are most relevant to your managers, such as dealing with:
- a sudden fall in performance
- the 'no improvement' review
- the 'bolshie' employee
- the high-performer who isn't meeting objectives
Part Two gives you 8 ready-to-run activities that deal with the skills required to confidently address the poor performance issues, without demoralising or antagonising the individual concerned. To name just a few, you'll find activities that address:
- hiding your own opinion of the poor performer
- listening properly to the person
- setting improvement targets
- making action reports
List of Activities
PART ONE: SITUATIONS AND PROCESSES
1. Dealing with a newcomer's poor performance
Uses role-play and the coaching matrix to identify the part management plays in the under-performance of a new member of the workgroup.
2. Dealing with the slightly below-average employee
Examines the reasons for the neglect of these poor performers and provides effective behaviours for managers to use for improvement.
3. Dealing with a sudden fall in performance
Highlights the importance of dealing with feelings, and provides a skill practice in which participants use a six-step approach to handling personal issues affecting performance.
4. Dealing with the 'no improvement' review
What if all your best efforts result in no improvement? Through group discussions and casework, this activity builds on information provided by you to ensure the 'no improvement' poor performer is involved in improvement targets and aware of the consequences of non-achievement.
5. Dealing with the 'bolshie' employee
Participants look for the positive aspects of 'bolshie' behaviour and work on an agenda for dealing with it. The case of Joe Higgins provides them with a difficult individual to work on.
6. Dealing with the aggressive player
Dealing with aggression is always intimidating; this activity provides some general rules to follow in dealing with it. Aggressive behaviours are examined in terms of dominance and care, and specific behaviours for calming different types of aggressor are set out.
7. Dealing with the high performer who is not meeting objectives
'High-flyers' often don't perform well at what they consider to be work that is 'beneath them'. Greater involvement is often the answer, and this activity provides the 'high-flyer development process' that will ensure both involvement in high-level activity as well as commitment to low-level tasks.
8. Dealing with the apathetic employee
This activity divides the apathetic poor performers into two groups: the 'No' people who say 'no', 'can't' and 'shan't' to everything, and the 'whiners and groaners'. Methods of dealing with each of these are brought out.
9. Dealing with the emotional employee
Handling poor performers often leads to an emotional outburst from them. In this activity, in two separate role-plays, participants learn the underlying principles of dealing with emotion in others and adopt a carefully structured process with which to engage the individual.
10. Dealing with the 'know-all' who contributes little
The individual's need for self-worth is examined and related to their performance level. Participants then generate a six-step process to use in improving the individual's sense of self-worth.
PART TWO: THE PERSONAL APPROACH AND THE KEY SKILLS
11. Analysing the causes of poor performance
Provides work-based practice at using an analytical model for categorising poor performance in terms of willingness and ability.
12. Listening properly to the person
Provides participants with the key skill of performance improvement, that of listening to the poor performer on three levels.
13. Hiding your own opinion
Keeping one's opinion to oneself is crucial in avoiding a personality focus when dealing with poor performers. In this activity the participants practise concealing their opinion whilst discussing controversial issues.
14. Key aspects of working with the poor performer
Provides a generic set of principles and processes for dealing with any type of poor performer.
15. Setting improvement targets for the poor performer
Poor-performer objectives are different from those set for others. As well as being specific and time-related, they need to be seen by others as acceptable and not letting the individual 'get away with it'. Because of the individual's past record, these objectives must be 'internalised' by the poor performer. Four case studies provide a focus and practice for setting poor-performer objectives.
16. Giving feedback on poor performance
Giving feedback can make things worse! This activity focuses on giving feedback in an empathetic manner, and asks participants to choose an empathetic response from a number of alternatives.
17. Making action report on poor performance
Using a meeting planner produced by members of the group and a meeting summary document, participants conduct a piece of theatre.
18. Customising your approach
Participants learn about the different personality traits in individuals. They practise recognising these in each other and then, in discussion pairs, formulate the most effective ways of bringing about performance improvement with a particular individual.
344 pages, with 80 OK to copy pages.
