In thinking through how to effectively deal with poor performers in your organization,
ask yourself these five important questions:

Are there people on your team who are not performing up to the expectations of
the job?

• Over time, the poor performers ultimately hinder the productivity of even the best
  employees.

Are you walking the talk regarding your brand?

• Are your top performers listening to you preach about the brand and its values/benefits,
  only to witness poor performers getting by just as easily as before? Leaders who allow
  poor performers to ride the coattails of the strongest members of the team will ultimately
  lose credibility.
  

Are there members of your team whom you would not hire again if given
the opportunity?

• If so, you are losing the war on poor performance. There are three ways to handle
  this situation:
• Inspire the individual to learn what it will take to become a great performer.
• Motivate the individual to try another position within the company where his/her energy
  and skill may be better suited.
• Terminate the individual who does not positively represent the company’s brand and
  who does not have what it takes to live it in his/her daily work. Rarely do leaders
  fire someone and then say, “I wish I had kept him/her a little longer.” In fact, most
  often they wonder why they didn’t do it sooner.
  

Do your people know how they’re doing?

• Great leaders don’t allow employees to wonder. If they are doing great, these leaders
  let them know. If they are doing just okay, they let them know. And if performance
  is hindering progress, they let them know that, too. Leaders must care enough to confront
  performance, otherwise they risk losing the respect of their top performers.

Do you set realistic expectations for success and attach deadlines
for success?

• When someone isn’t performing as expected, you have to take the time, energy, and
  focus to redefine for that person what success looks like and establish a benchmark
  for accountability. Doing so will instill the urgency and focus required for the employee
  to have the greatest opportunity for success.