What do you do when you’re faced with a key member of staff who has failed to succeed in terms of contribution?

At what point do you sit down for a serious ‘heart-to-heart’ with optimistic expectations that there’ll be substantial improvements? At what point do you capitulate and take the tough decision?

It’s rather like asking, “How long is a piece of string?” There’s no clear and universal answer, and perhaps this is why so many executive level managers leave the situation alone until it’s too late to affect the inevitable outcome.

There are many reasons why deferral happens so frequently. Many senior managers do not monitor the performance of their team members anywhere closely enough to detect sub-optimal performance in its earlier stages – when quick and easy solutions are possible. Others are prone to leaving a definitive confrontation until the last possible moment even though they may well have been alert to the shortfall for some considerable time.

Between these ‘extremes’ there’s a plethora of ‘sound excuses’ – for this is truly what they are – excuses. ‘The performance shortfall could have been due to external factors – hopefully temporary.’ ‘I was confident that given time and some space, (s)he would be able to improve matters without needing to get me involved.’ ‘(S)He knew I was concerned, and this should have been enough for an escalation of effort / change in tactics.’ The real reason for deferral is more likely that few managers are sufficiently confident or competent to use the appropriate tool in such a situation. Instead of remedying the situation, the popular strategy is to wait until the case is ‘going terminal’ and then to call in an expert. What a terrible waste of resources!

The need is for coaching, and it’s very doubtful that it can ever be applied successfully by anyone external to the organization. It’s a critical tool for every manager worth his/her salt.

There’s no mystery. Coaching is any intervention which ‘refines / enhances individual performance and assists in the achievement of personal mastery’. It’s not at all difficult for those who know what standards of performance are possible in the given context. What’s confusing, and a major impediment to success, is that the context is not clear.

The factors that drive the business organization are not the same as those which drive people. Few people respond well to being controlled and systemized.

Clear direction – that is what the organization is trying to accomplish, needs to be translated into highly individualistic formats for people to ‘consume’. People do not achieve this easily if left to their own devices – they need mentoring.

People with significant problems will have great challenges in focusing on issues other than the problems until they are resolved. In other words, if I have a fever, don’t spend time telling me to get fit!

Management’s primary organizational task is to manage processes, not people. People who have clear direction, room to maneuver, and no serious distracting problems are usually quite capable of managing themselves.

Management’s primary interpersonal tasks are to mentor and to coach. Mentoring focuses on matching organizational goals and standards to personal ones. Coaching focuses on performance enhancement / personal mastery. If the issue is ‘what’ needs to be done, put on your Mentor hat. If the concern is ‘how’ it could be done better, offer your services as a Coach.

What should be left to the specialists and experts is Counseling – specific interventions to diagnose / correct problems, and Training – specific interventions to provide needed knowledge, skills and awareness. These are remedial rather that developmental.

The final focus for the adept manager in practice is Monitoring / Performance Management. This too, works best when left to the individual following explicit agreement on what should be monitored, when and how.

The bottom line? Managers could be substantially more effective in the role if they’d just understand that staff are capable of managing themselves with great precision and enthusiasm – if only the context is right.