When an employee is not performing at the level the supervisor expects, it is easy to blame the employee but the supervisor should first assess themselves. Is the lack of performance due to employee incompetence or is it really due to a lack of training/mentoring from the supervisor?
I believe there are many ex-employees who could have thrived in their positions if they had been given the right support and ongoing attention that they required. Supervisors often feel like they don’t have the time to coach an employee over an extended period of time, yet somehow they find the time to conduct a search and begin the training process all over again with someone new. Far better to invest in the employees they have.
It is incumbent upon the supervisor to communicate the vision, values and norms – and to make ongoing, repeated course corrections if required to help the employee align with the culture. It requires frank, honest and oftentimes uncomfortable conversations to speak the truth about expectations and performance gaps. It also requires a mindset that the goal is to make the relationship work, rather than to focus on what isn’t.
It would be awesome if all our employees were intuitive enough to know how to deliver what is expected of them, but oftentimes supervisors fail to clarify and provide the resources for either the know-how or the expectations portion of the equation. Yes, it requires time to help your employees thrive, but it is the best investment of yourself that you can make.
