Purpose of this document.
This document outlines the reasons why employees don’t perform, explain why training isn’t always the answer. It offers a checklist to identify the source of the problem, and provides practical solutions.
Have quality learning solutions in place in any organisation is the cornerstone of empowering employees to perform. Only people who are competent are able to perform and reach their goals. Learning and development is therefor an important part of that strategy.
However, when employees don’t perform, training should not be the first solution that you think of. There are many reasons for employees not performing and lack of training (or competence) is only one of the reasons. Organisations are sometimes too quick to spend money on training, hoping that it will lead to an increase in performance. If competence is not the source of the problem, training will not be the solution.
In 1984 Alexander Romiszowski created the Human Performance Technology Model. According to him there are 4 questions to ask initially, and the answers to these will lead you to more questions, and finally the cause of the non-performance.
- Did the employee used to perform well?
If the answer is yes, it could be that the tasks that they need to do is not practiced frequently. That could lead to them being unable to perform at the rare occasions when they need to perform the task.The answer here is to plan regular practice and to re-train frequently. You can also supply a manual or a job aid e.g. a work instruction with step by step guidelines on how to perform the task.It could also be that the employee has lost motivation to perform. Link in to what motivates them and provide that as an incentive. You should provide feedback on performance regularly to keep the employee focused.
- The employee could never perform well.
If the employee has the necessary pre-requistes to do the job (skills, education, characteristics) provide coaching and support by showing the employee how to do the job through formal instruction or on-the-job training.It might be that the employee does not have the pre-requisite skills or characteristics to do the job. In these situations it might be possible to teach the pre-requisites e.g. teaching basic computer skills in order to use a company IT system. If it’s not possible to teach the pre-requisites, you can re-assign the employee to another role, transfer them to a position that they can cope with, or restructure the job.
- Next, look at the consequences of performance.
If there are no obvious consequences for performance (either good or bad) employees might not be motivated to perform at all. They might not even know that they are under-performing. Ensure that a system is implemented to provide feedback on their performance frequently e.g. a weekly or monthly 1 on 1 with their supervisor, or a visual board in the office tracking key performance indicators against the goal. Follow up with clear rewards for good performance.It might not always be clear that there are rewards for poor performance. It seems not to make any sense. However, when poor performance is not addressed honestly, or poor-performing employees are promoted to “get rid of the problem” it sends a clear signal to employees that poor performance is celebrated and rewarded. Ensure that you tackle poor performance head on, and be direct about why poor performance is not acceptable. Also pay attention to the stories that are told in your organisation. Are people sharing humorous stories of the sales employee who got the order wrong by millions as a way of “celebrating” them as heroes? This could indicate that poor performance is rewarded.Good performance is punished by “shooting the messenger” e.g. when an employee highlights a problem or issue that impacts on performance, they are victimised and humiliated. It could also happen that good performers are ridiculed as being the “boss’ pet”. Another way that performance is punished is heaping so much work onto a good performer that they become overwhelmed. This is particularly toxic if the well-performing employee has to carry the load for poor performers.
Increase the rewards for good performance clearly and honestly so that employees can see the link between performance and reward.
- How is the job organised?
The organisation of the job might be the easiest way to solve the problem, if that indeed, is what is wrong. It could be that the methods or equipment used aren’t working or are deficient. Ensure that systems are working, that employees have access to the information that they need and that they have the relevant tools to do the job.The management or supervisor system could be deficient. Ensure that your supervisors and managers are trained on how to schedule work, manage performance and hold people accountable. It could be that they are overwhelmed and too busy with their own tasks, or with administration, to focus on the team’s performance. Re-organise their responsibilities to allow them the time and resources they need in order to manage their teams.Build a performance dashboard that is updated regularly (and automatically) so that supervisors can use that to manage performance. Ensure that the goals are known and that supervisors are clear on how the team’s performance supports the company strategy. Review processes to ensure that they are efficient and cut out double work.
Click here to download the Checklist Reasons for poor performance checklist (PDF)