How to Manage and Motivate Underperforming Employees

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You’ll be faced with many challenges when managing a team. One of these could be dealing with employees who are underperforming. This task requires motivating the employees and addressing concerns so they are able to develop.

In this short guide, we’ll have a look at the ways you can manage and motivate underperforming employees.

What Are the Indicators of Underperforming Employees?

The first step is to identify underperforming employees and the reasons behind them. Many factors can contribute to the underperformance of an employee, such as inadequate training, low motivation, a lack of clear expectations, or personal challenges. When you can recognise these underlying causes, you can address any performance issues effectively. It’s crucial to be able to identify the main indicators early before they become bigger issues.

1. Not fulfilling job responsibilities

The biggest indicator of underperformance is when you have an employee who consistently fails to meet the basic requirements of their job role. They may miss deadlines, neglect crucial aspects of their role, produce low-quality work, or often a combination of all three. If an employee is consistently struggling to meet their job requirements, then something may be wrong.

2. Behavioural issues impacting team morale

Another clear indicator that an employee is underperforming is bad behaviours or attitudes. When you have an employee who resists teamwork, has a negative attitude, or lacks motivation, it can impact the morale of the whole team. If you start to see an employee's attitude or behaviour have an impact on other team members, it could be a sign that they are underperforming.

3. Inadequate skill development

Today’s work environment is fast-paced and requires continuous learning and development. If an employee isn’t taking opportunities to develop their skills or is struggling with routine tasks in their job role, it could be an indication that they are underperforming.

4. Failure to engage and collaborate

If you want a thriving workplace, you need collaboration and engagement from your employees. If your employees are showing a lack of interest in team activities or seem disengaged from business goals, it could be an indication that there are underlying problems.

Steps to Manage and Motivate Underperforming Employees

Once you've identified underperforming or unmotivated employees, the next step is to address them respectfully and effectively. Here are some methods you can use to manage and motivate underperforming employees:

1. Identify specific areas of underperformance

Before you speak with the employee, you need to pinpoint the exact areas that are an issue. Is it their attitude towards the workplace, punctuality, or maybe the quality of their work? You need to be as specific as possible. This will enable you to address the concerns effectively and also ensure that the conversations with the employee are constructive and focused.

2. Pinpoint any skill gaps and provide upskilling opportunities

Once you’ve found areas of concern, you need to identify if the problem comes from a lack of skills. Offer upskilling and training opportunities so they can develop the skills to perform better. This shows that you are interested in their development, which can also help improve their motivation.

Technology, such as ATS software, can also play a vital role in this. Using this type of technology, you can identify and address any skill gaps during the recruitment process. This will enable you to ensure any new hires are prepared and able to meet the demands of their new role from the get-go. This will help to lower the chance of underperformance in the future.

3. Develop an action plan with clear, achievable goals

When talking with an employee, you need to create an action plan with agreed-upon goals. Work together to create an action plan that addresses any areas of underperformance. The action plan should contain achievable and measurable goals. Set a reasonable timeframe for any objectives. It’s a good idea to set short-term objectives to help motivate the employees to achieve long-term improvements.

4. Schedule regular check-ins to discuss progress

When you have an action plan in place, it is essential to monitor the employee's progress and provide them with ongoing support. You should have regular catch-up meetings where you focus on what the employee has achieved and what they still need to work on.

5. Foster an open environment for discussing challenges

Make it clear to your employees that they are able to talk to you anytime about any challenges they are facing. You must encourage underperforming employees to open up about any difficulties they are facing. It could be work or personal life. When you enable them to open up, you can start to understand their underperformance from their perspective.

6. Pair the employee with a mentor for guidance

Pairing underperforming employees with a mentor can help provide them with the guidance, experiences, and advice that they need to bring them up to standard. It can help to keep them motivated, encourage teamwork, and also offer a more personal method of support.

7. Acknowledge and reward performance improvements

Recognition is a powerful tool when it comes to motivation. When an employee is showing signs of improvement, you must acknowledge it. It could be a written note or verbal praise. When you positively reinforce good performance, you are more likely to see continued improvement.

8. Investigate and resolve other underlying issues

At times, underperformance can be caused by deeper issues. Poor management, workplace discrimination, or a toxic work culture could all impact the way employees feel in the workplace. You need to find out if any of these could be the root cause of underperformance.

9. Demonstrate desired performance and behaviour standards

You must model the performance and behaviour standards that you expect from your team. As a leader, you need to be consistent, have a positive attitude, and be dedicated. Employees will usually take cues from their leaders, so if you want to have a motivated team that performs well, you need to be their role model.

10. Set clear consequences for continued underperformance

Setting expectations is just as important as showing encouragement and offering support. You must be clear about the consequences that may follow if there is continued underperformance. It is important to be transparent about the steps, including training, a change in job role, or, in some cases, dismissal. You will find that being clear about these will help provide the motivation needed for change.

Conclusion

Leadership requires managing and motivating underperforming employees. When you can identify underperformance indicators and encourage your staff to improve, you can help them turn things around. With these simple steps, you can help your employees become valuable team members.

Author Bio

Natasha Thakkar is a Content Marketing Manager at Oleeo. With more than a decade-long experience in marketing and handling global projects up her sleeve, she's turned her passion for lead generation and impactful communication into a journey of building Oleeo's brand, network, and audience. Catch up with Natasha on LinkedIn.