Before we help someone to improve their performance we need to understand exactly what aspect fo their performance is causing the problem. In order to do this, it is important to explore what exactly performance is. An interesting insight is that Performance = Ability multiplied by Motivation.


 Ability is the person's aptitude, as well as the training and resources supplied by the organization.
 Motivation is the product of desire and commitment.

This tells us that the root cause of the underpeformance may not be down to poor motivation for example. It may simply be a lack of ability (at least currently) for the job in question. The important point here is that incorrect diagnosis may simply exacerbate the problem e.g. mistakenly believing that effort and motivation are the problem could lead a manager to increase pressure to perform even though the real issue is the individuals “ability” to perform the role. This in turn could then lead to even worse performance.

Some “Do’s and Don’ts” may be helpful to review at this point.

Do:

Act sooner rather than later. It is unfair to let a false impression of good performance develop.
Have a frank and honest conversation.
Consider how you might be contributing to the issue.
Create a measurable performance development plan together.
Have a clear follow-up process.
Document each step and commitment.