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Perhaps the most difficult issue any leader will ever have to confront is an underperforming team member. In my experience, no issue creates more angst and encourages more avoidance, even in the most senior and experienced executives. At the same time, there are few issues that destroy more value in an organization or undermine commitment in a team.

If the team member in question has a sense that they’re not performing to the required level (and they probably do), then their work day will be somewhere between very unpleasant and totally miserable. They may feel like a failure, will likely struggle for confidence, and will be waiting for the inevitable tap on their shoulder. It’s all very debilitating.

If they genuinely don’t know that they’re underperforming, you have an additional problem. It means that on any given day, they could be completely blindsided. Avoiding the issue does them no favors either way.

Next is the cost to your team. If you have a team of ten, and two members are underperforming. You’re now 20% underweight, so your team’s collective impact and output will suffer. It’s also very likely that the other eight will be talking about their two colleagues in the hallways, undermining team harmony.

Most importantly, unaddressed underperformance lowers overall team standards and commitment. A team does not rise to the level of aspired excellence; it drops to the level of tolerated behavior. Why would eight team members give their very best every day, day after day, when two colleagues are underdelivering with no apparent consequences?

Finally, there’s the cost to you. If you try to pick up the slack and step in to do their job, who will do yours? Martyrdom is not leadership.

Addressing underperformance in a team member is not at all easy, but it is absolutely critical.

INSPIRATION FROM OTHERS

“Your underperforming employee isn’t failing, you are.” – Jeff Matlow

“Nothing will kill a great employee faster than watching you tolerate a bad one.” – Kerry Belcher

QUESTIONS TO REFLECT ON

• How do you deal with underperformance in your team members?
• What is the cost of avoiding underperformance in your team?
• How will you address underperformance moving forward?

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