Issue Resolution and Prevention Specialists
Blog Layout
What to do when a team member isn’t performing
Dealing with an underperforming team member is a “rite of passage” for any manager. Our 4-step approach will guide you through this challenge.
Consider the 4 likely reasons for low performance:
1) Expectations not understood or goals not clear
2) Skill gaps
3) Personal problems
4) Talent not suited for the role
1) When faced with an underperforming team member, we recommend first looking inward - did you do enough (a) to clarify the overall behavior expectations (taking initiative, following up, thinking creatively, etc.), and (b) to ensure the person's individual goals comply with all aspects of SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable yet Aggressive, Relevant, Time-bound & Tracked), and (c) to get buy-in from the team member? Rectify any gaps in expectations, goals, and buy-in before proceeding to the subsequent steps.
2) If expectations and goals are clear, but results are still not forthcoming, examine the person's skillset and available tools. Do they have what they need to perform successfully? If supplemental or upgraded tools are needed, provide them. If there are specific skill gaps, explore training and mentoring options. Pairing a lower skilled person with an expert can be very effective (but only if the expert is guiding/developing, not doing the work for the unskilled person).
3) If expectations & goals are clear and skills/tools are adequate, it's possible the person is distracted by a serious personal problem. Obviously, such issues should only be discussed privately. Be compassionate and be as flexible as you can. Perhaps some work could be shifted to another person temporarily, etc. It’s the right thing to do, plus, people who understand that you really care about them will be highly motivated to help you when things return to normal for them.
4) If expectations and goals are clear, skills/tools are adequate, and there is no personal problem, it's possible the person is simply not a good fit for the role. This does not mean they are a bad person, or a bad professional, just that their style does not work well in your company's system. In this case, you may need to take action to address the performance gap. If the person's skills and attitude match another job better, maybe an internal move could make sense. If the person would not likely be successful in another role, then you may have to formally put them on a performance improvement plan. In the end, keeping a poor performer hurts the team and hurts the person. It's better for everyone if they find a role elsewhere in which they can thrive.
Note: Addressing poor performance is a vital management activity. It's a skill that you should develop. Acting swiftly in these cases is recognized by senior leaders as a positive management trait. Mastering this skill is important to career development and being viewed as an effective leader.
Danger is lurking around every corner in a new product development / new product introduction project. Avoidable risks wind up blindsiding teams, always at the worst possible moment. Risks blow up into problems because teams misjudge their nature and origin, and lack the right tools and processes to effectively identify, assess, and mitigate them. Let CAEDENCE introduce you to a systematic approach and toolkit for managing and reducing risk in new product development and introduction
There are dozens of tools for reducing risk in new product development and introduction. We know because we've used them to successfully launch dozens of new products in highly demanding industries like automotive and aerospace. Let CAEDENCE show you a few of our favorite tools that you can use immediately to dramatically reduce the chances of disaster on your next NPD/NPI project.
Risk is inherent in new product development and introduction. Regardless of your personal risk tolerance, it's critical to understand that unmanaged risk could ruin your business. We're not saying "don't take risks". We're saying "take risks with your eyes open". Let CAEDENCE introduce you to a systematic approach and toolkit for managing and reducing risk in new product development and introduction.
Many risks in NPD & NPI are visible. New process steps that must be implemented with caution and back-up plans. Unique product features that are challenging to accomplish. But there are other risks lurking. Things that can derail your project before you even realize. A bit nervous now? You should be! But, don't worry. Let CAEDENCE introduce you to a systematic approach and toolkit for managing and reducing risk in new product development and introduction.
Successful new product development and introduction projects require carefully balancing dozens of critical parameters, any one of which could sink the ship. At the end of the day, each of those dozens of NPD/NPI success measures relates to an aspect of just 4 main stakeholder care-abouts: Launch timing, Project budget, Product margin performance, Quality / delivery (customer experience). Learn the systematic method to reduce risks in your new product developments.
CAEDENCE has decoded decades of business experience to reveal the intuition and practices of top performing teams and individuals to radically accelerate people and teams toward excellence. We know the theory, but we've also lived everything we teach and honed best practices for decades. This arms us with tons of real-world examples to engage students and clarify techniques. We often help clients out of crisis situations, but our passion is preventing crises from occurring in the first place. This means (a) establishing robust systems, (b) empowering leaders, and (c) upskilling teams.
We challenge our problem solving classes to play “20 questions” – can we guess a randomly selected word using just 20 yes/no questions? Engineers often say it’s impossible. But, 99 out of 100 times, we find the word! How? There’s no magic: what’s on display is the power of binary decision making, what we call “splitting the dictionary”. And you can apply it to all sorts of real-world problem-solving scenarios. “Splitting the dictionary” is a problem scoping technique of asking the right questions to eliminate as many incorrect possibilities as you can, thus focusing your root cause search in the right area. Effective scoping is key to efficient problem-solving. Once the problem is clearly defined, think of the root cause as a needle in a haystack. Before you start examining hay, first ask “Am I on the right farm?”, then, “Which haystack should I search?”, then “Which portion of the chosen haystack is most likely to contain the needle?” Scoping out the possibilities with a simple tool or test can radically acc
Many teams and companies struggle to get the most out of structured problem solving methodologies because they make one or more of the common mistakes shown, and they don’t even realize they’re doing it! (We’ve shown the 8D process here, but whether your company uses 8D, Six Sigma DMAIC, PDCA, A3, or another paradigm doesn’t matter.) The issue is HOW any of those methodologies are used by real teams in real time in the real world.
“The people we nominate to help in this situation are either going to be the chicken or the pig.” The room went silent. The “chicken or pig” comment came specifically in response to resistance someone had to sending some people to the remote site. After a pause, the executive went on to explain “when you are making breakfast, the chicken contributes, but the pig is committed”. We weren’t going to resolve this problem with remote and part-time help. To get the job done, we would have to send people truly committed to working hands-on and to staying abroad for weeks until the job was done. “chicken or pig” became team shorthand for level of commitment. Next time your team is faced with a big challenge, I strongly encourage you to reflect - are you and your team sufficiently committed for the team to succeed? Are you going to be chickens or pigs?
When trying to improve or optimize a business or manufacturing process, there is one main rule: your actual process is never what you think it is. You need to "walk the process" (literally follow and watch every step of the process) to understand every step and detail. This will reveal steps and activities that are non-value added or causing significant pain. In addition, when working with teams, if people see that you’re really listening to them, they will be open to listening to you.
Copyright © 2021 - 2024 CAEDENCE Consulting LLC, All Rights Reserved.
