None of us are perfect. We all know that.

The trick is knowing where our imperfections lie. They can be difficult to see, unless someone else shows us.

If your employees are unaware of their shortcomings, that can cause you deep distress. You may seethe at their failures. They may be costing you money. You may be losing customers.

But is it really the employee’s fault if they are blissfully unaware that their work is unsatisfactory to you?

TELL THEM FIRST

Yes, you can dismiss someone if they are not performing their role to the standard you expect. But in fairness, you must first give them a chance to know what that standard is and provide them with an opportunity to improve, before you dismiss them.

In other words, the first step to addressing poor performance is to communicate your expectations clearly.

There are other reasonable measures you must also take:

• The standards that you communicate must be fair and reasonably achievable.
• The time you give employees to demonstrate that they can meet your expectations must be a reasonable period.
• The employee must be put on sufficient notice that you may take disciplinary action (such as giving them a warning or dismissing them) if they do not improve.

A STEP-BY-STEP GUIDE

To help you, I have put together this step-by-step guide that you can use as a framework for addressing employee non-performance in a fair way.

It may not cover every eventuality, but it does at least give you a starting point for communicating your expectations.

Moreover, it gives you an indication of how you can fairly move towards disciplinary action, such as a warning or dismissal, if the employee does not improve.

Get the step-by-step guide here.