Hi Andy and Emma!

I’m trying to coach my direct report to increase her productivity. She’s a great writer, but a slow one. I’ve been clear about productivity expectations from day one, but wanted to give her ample time to learn the brand voice and all the ins and outs of the job. Now we’re halfway her seventh month on the job, and she’s making lots of excuses about not hitting her productivity goals. The business needs her to be faster. I need her to be faster.

She tells me in her 1-on-1s that the workload is too much — yet everyone else on the team is doing much more in the same amount of time. I’ve talked to her about time management, I’ve encouraged her to set timers for tasks, block her calendar, etc. I’ve showed her my own time-saving tricks. I haven’t noticed a difference in output.

Beyond this job, I feel like being a speedy worker (without sacrificing quality) is one of the best skills you can develop, and I want to teach her that mental grit—the ability to just bear down and get it done, full stop. Are some people just low producers? I find myself getting increasingly annoyed at the complaints/excuses, and then mad at myself for not being more understanding. Help!

Emma: I see so much of myself in your actions. Look at how much problem solving you’ve been doing! A big part of me is tempted to keep the brainstorming going: Have you tried using templates? Or having a speedier editor create outlines for her to fill in? But all the time management hacks and clever strategies in the world aren’t going to fix a slow worker in a fast job.

Andy: I’m not sure there are all-around “low producers,” but there are certainly people who don’t fit the job they have. That’s what this situation could be: You’ve spent the past seven months trying to get your sprinter to be an ultramarathoner — coaching someone with obvious talent to keep going and going and going. With enough time and training, you hope she’ll be able blast out 50 miles every day. But lots of sprinters are just going to be depleted. Distance isn’t where their strength is.

Emma: It’s a hard truth to help someone come to terms with if they are in denial — and doubly so if you’ve also been in denial as their manager. We champion our underperformers for weeks on end, a kind of “You can do it, I know you can!” cheer while we wait for the moment everything clicks into place. Waiting for a click that never comes is a long and quiet torture. I’ve found it comes in stages, like grief.

Name That Feeling

This is a pretty typical list of feelings we both experience as managers when we’re working with someone who doesn’t seem to be getting it. These feelings aren’t always linear; some repeat and sometimes you get stuck in a loop. Check off the ones that feel familiar. The more you’ve checked, the closer you probably are to a PIP.

Surprise: When I hired this person, I expected them to be competent, but they’re not!

Excuses: She’s still learning, what we do is hard, this is new for her

Determination: I can fix this!

Frustration: Why isn’t she getting it? She should be getting it

Insecurity: Am I not giving her the right advice?

Annoyance: She’s not improving and she keeps complaining, are you kidding me?

Denial: I’m definitely going to fix this!

Guilt: Is this somehow my fault?

Grasping: What else can I do to fix this?

Dread: Am I going to have to fire her?

Hail Mary: Maybe if I try this one last thing!

Outrage: She doesn’t even seem to be trying anymore

Resignation: She’s never going to get it

 

 

Andy: We’re both compelled to brainstorm Hail Mary solutions with you all day, but ultimately we think it’s time for your report to go on a performance improvement plan. A PIP sounds very final, like you’re a doctor giving someone a terminal diagnosis, but I’ve seen all sorts of reactions when I’ve put someone on a PIP — including someone who immediately snapped to reality and blossomed.

Emma: If only all PIP conversations had those results!

Andy: Right? They all have that potential because a PIP lays everything out in super clear terms: the problem, the solutions you’ve tried so far, the consequences if things don’t change, and a real timeline for check-ins to measure that change.

Your report sounds like she’s talented and probably doesn’t like not being great, so you’re going to be guiding her through a shift in her perception of the problem — it’s not terminal, but it could be soon. The workload isn’t the issue; it’s the current mismatch between the workload demands and her output.

Emma: I recommend you acknowledge that directly: “If this is the top volume you can produce, this is just not the right job for you. We’re a really high-production team, and that isn’t going to change.” If you know it to be true, you can also point to another place that doesn’t have this mismatch: “Other agencies may have their writers do half this amount of work, and that might be a better fit.”

If she doesn’t agree — if she believes this is the right job for her and she’s ready to go on that PIP — she’s going to have to dramatically alter her process.

Andy: I’ve found when someone’s great at their job, but not fast enough, it’s sometimes their own talent getting in the way of production. A PIP can provide the push they need to break perfectionism habits. I might ask, “What would it feel like to turn in something early, before it’s perfect?” or “What’s the worst that could happen if you did your work faster?”

Emma: I love both of those questions. I also thinks it’s good to remind perfectionists on your team what systems are in place to ensure the integrity of the work — that it’s not solely on her shoulders. Do you have editors, or proof readers, or a QA team? If yes, something like, “It’s the job of an editor to alley-oop our content into the basket. If you hold onto the ball until you can dunk, we’re not going to win the game. You need to let go of the ball and trust that we’ll get it to the hoop as a team.”

Andy: I mean, any time you can make that solid of a basketball metaphor, you need to take it.

Emma: Absolutely.

Andy: One thing to remember through it all: It’s generous to put someone on a PIP. If they’re not great at this job on this job’s terms, then no one will be happy — not them, not you, not the business.

The first step to putting together a PIP is coming to terms with it and knowing it’s not your fault. Figuring out if your person is in the right job is the right move. When you have that down, it’s time to talk to HR. They’ll help you create a plan that fits your company policies and help you as you navigate through it all.

Emma: Good luck! And let us know how it goes.

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