Obstacles to work performance
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How does your organization give employees the feedback and support they need to perform their jobs well?
Do you have a formal performance management system and schedule or are reviews more informal and sporadic?
Either way, giving feedback on performance can seem like an unpleasant task and many managers put it off as long as possible.
One of the main reasons for the procrastination is that they may not have mastered the critical skill of giving employees useful information about their work behaviour.
There is a bounty of resources and tools designed to support effective performance review systems.
This article is focused more on the intention behind the process so that it is more positive and less daunting.
Anyone who has ever participated in one of my classes or workshops on leadership may find the following guidelines familiar. If these are new to you, I hope you find them helpful as well.
Let’s say you are a manager struggling with how to talk to an employee who is not performing in his/her role.
Consider that there are three basic reasons why people don’t perform well. The first reason for poor performance is that the employees don’t know what is expected of them in their roles. They just don’t know what to do.
This speaks directly to how well employees are orientated to their positions, not just when they’re hired but on an ongoing basis.
Roles and responsibilities often change so it is only fair to share this information regularly with those affected.
The second reason people might not perform well is that they don’t know how to do the job.
That could be an issue of training, or it could be a question of competency.
Unfortunately, many people are uncomfortable admitting that they don’t know how to do a particular aspect of their work.
However, if there is trust between the employee and manager this discussion can be a productive one which allows performance to be corrected early with targeted training or on the job coaching.
The third reason for work performance issues is that something is getting in the way.
Obstacles to success can be as simple as not having the right software or work tools, or it can be as complex as poor leadership, a toxic work environment, personal health or family issues.
Dealing with this last reason can be much trickier for obvious reasons and when the obstacle is more personal, it takes more finesse to get to the heart of it.
Once you figure out which of these obstacles are relevant for a particular individual, the strategy for improvement will seem simpler.
If your management style is part of the problem, then you have a responsibility to take action.
There are many resources out there to help you be a better communicator. Managers are expected to guide employees to high performance and to be effective in that role you need to not only give constructive feedback, but openly receive it as well.
Whether your organization uses a software program, or informal one-on-one meetings, conducting performance reviews gets easier if you stay focused on a positive outcome—to let your employees know how well they’re doing and to ask what you can do to help them do even better.
Laurie Mills is a certified coach and human resource professional. Her company is Lighthouse Professional Development Consulting Services. The subject matter in this article is for general informational purposes only and is not intended to be relied upon as professional advice.
250-869-7523
www.lighthousepdcs.com
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