Sometimes managers accept poor performance for far too long, with serious consequences for a team, department, or organization. If you think that an employee has a performance problem, the first step is to sit down and calmly assess the situation. Don’t rely simply on your feelings.

The following information has been adapted from The Performance Management Activity Pack Tools for Building Appraisal and Performance Development Skills, by Terry Gillen (AMACOM 2001)

Ask yourself the following questions to determine whether or not a performance problem exists:

• Staff member requires excessive supervision
• Staff member’s work requires unacceptable or frequent correction or completion
• Manager avoids giving staff member certain tasks because he cannot be relied on
• Staff member’s quantity or quality of work creates bottlenecks
• When staff member is given a new task, performance deteriorates unreasonably
• Staff member’s judgment, problem solving, decision making, initiative, motivation, communication, etc., is below par
• Staff member unreasonably avoids unpleasant tasks
• Staff member passes the buck does not “ own” problems
• Staff member frequently misses deadlines
• Staff member avoids cooperation
• Staff member’s attendance, sickness, or punctuality record is below par
• Staff member frequently takes extended breaks
• Staff member is missing when certain tasks need to be done
• Staff member avoids his/her fair share of the workload
• Staff member’s standard of behavior toward other people is below an acceptable level
• Staff member’s behavior causes conflict
• Staff member expresses negative opinions in a manner or with a frequency that causes disruption