Know When to Cut Your Losses

You hire someone you believe will be an A-player. Someone who has the potential to make a significant contribution in your workplace and yet the potential you anticipate for this employee is never realized. Instead you find yourself with a substandard performer that no matter how much you try, doesn't seem to "get it."

Sound familiar? There is certainly nothing wrong with being optimistic or wanting to help someone succeed but when that potential is something that you have not yet seen with concrete actions or do not have evidence to support it, it may be time to cut your losses. We often believe that if we are patient, invest more time, attention and perhaps resources that things will improve. Or, better yet, the employee acknowledges there is a problem but assures us things will improve in a few weeks. As an HR professional I recommend to my clients that the employee be given a chance to succeed and to try and turn their poor performance around within a reasonable timeframe. But when the employee's performance or behavior does not improve after repeated efforts on your part, when is it time to cut your losses?

I realize that many of us hesitate to terminate employees because the time and energy it takes to find a replacement is sometimes more daunting than limping along with an underperformer. There are however a number of reasons the decision to hang on to an employee just a bit longer can be more detrimental to your workplace than terminating the employee. When faced with the decision of should they stay or should they go ask yourself these questions:

• Is retaining this employee best for the company? Are you investing so much time and energy on this underperformer that higher priority work, such as growing your business, is suffering?
• Is retaining this employee best for the employee? You may be trying to fit a round peg into a square hole rather than letting the employee go and allowing them find a square peg that will be a much better fit for them elsewhere.
• Is retaining this employee best for other employees? The nonverbal message you are sending to other employees by keeping a poor performer around too long can demotivate his/her peers. Often times I find once the decision is finally made to terminate an underperformer, most of his/her peers will say, "what took you so long?"

As long as you are confident that you provided the employee with all the tools, resources and training necessary to succeed, yet they did not fulfill the needs of the position, then it is time to part ways. You will likely know whether you have the right person for the job within 60 - 90 days. So, what should you do? They best way to prevent the interminable hope for greatness, is to create tools that will allow you to assess the employee's performance at 30, 60 and 90 days. Set goals and productivity milestones that will not only aid you in your assessment but if the employee is really a go-getter they will appreciate this structure and direction. Devoting your time and attention on the right employees will not only make you a better manager but will aid in your business' success.

(Excerpts from SHRM Magazine, May 2009)