Managing and Documenting Under-performance Employees

When performance slips, leaders feel it first: deadlines slide, rework piles up, tensions rise, and your high performers quietly wonder why standards don’t seem to apply to everyone. The hardest part isn’t spotting the problem—it’s handling it well. Many managers avoid the conversation for too long or jump in without a plan. Notes end up scattered across emails. Expectations feel implied rather than explicit. And when it’s finally time to escalate, the record doesn’t show the full, fair story you actually lived. This webinar was built to change that—giving you a clear, repeatable way to coach for improvement, document objectively, and decide confidently.

You’ll learn a straightforward framework that respects people and performance in equal measure. We start by making “what good looks like” visible, translating role responsibilities into specific, observable standards so you have common ground to coach from. Then we equip you with a conversation flow you can use the same day: a concise way to name the behavior and impact, invite your employee’s perspective, and lock in one or two measurable commitments with dates. No scripts that sound robotic. No legal jargon. Just practical language that lowers defensiveness and raises ownership.

Documentation becomes simple and sustainable rather than a dreaded chore. You’ll practice a five-line note that captures the essentials—date, standard, behavior, employee response, and agreed action—so progress (or lack of it) is visible over time. We pair that with an easy cadence for follow-up check-ins and same-day recap emails that keep momentum without burying you in paperwork. The result is a consistent, contemporaneous record you can share with HR when needed, one that demonstrates fairness, support, and clear expectations.

Of course, not every performance problem is the same. That’s why we show you how to diagnose the gap before you escalate—distinguishing a skill gap (can’t do it yet) from a will gap (won’t do it) and from friction (systems, clarity, or capacity issues). With that diagnosis, you’ll match the right intervention: targeted training and job aids for skill, reset expectations and tighter accountability for will, and blocker removal or prioritization for friction. This prevents overreacting—and it prevents months of well-intended coaching that never addresses the real issue.

Because leaders need to make decisions, not just have conversations, we’ll walk you through a practical decision path: when to keep coaching, when a focused Performance Improvement Plan (PIP) makes sense, when reassignment is the wiser move, and when separation is the necessary, respectful outcome. You’ll know the signals to look for, how to set pass/fail criteria up front, and when to call HR early to review risk—especially around consistency, comparators, timing near complaints or leave, and other protected factors. The goal is confidence and clarity, not hesitation or haste.

This training is designed for the realities of modern work: hybrid schedules, shared ownership across teams, and constant change. It helps you hold standards consistently across locations and shifts, set fair expectations in dynamic roles, and reduce the sense of surprise that erodes trust. Your strongest people will see that you’re serious about performance and serious about people—clear, fair, and steady. Those who need support will get it. Those who need accountability will feel it. And you’ll have the tools to show that both were offered.

Areas Covered in the Session:-

• Standards & Expectations that Stick
• Documentation that Holds Up
• Coaching → PIP → Corrective Action
• Protected Leave, Disability & Pregnancy Intersections
• Anti-Retaliation & Timing Awareness
• The Tough Conversation, Made Simple
• Accountability Rhythms that Work
• Diagnose the Gap Before You Escalate
• The Manager’s Decision Path

Background:-

Every organization relies on clear standards and consistent performance to serve customers, meet goals, and protect its culture. Yet most managers inherit teams with mixed capability and uneven habits. When results slip or behaviors erode trust—missed deadlines, rework, avoidable errors, unreliability—the first response often isn’t malice; it’s ambiguity. Expectations were assumed rather than stated, feedback arrived too late, and notes (if any) lived in scattered emails. What starts as a small gap becomes a pattern, then a risk.

Managing underperformance is not merely about correction—it’s about stewardship. Leaders are stewards of role clarity, team morale, operational continuity, and organizational values. Documentation is the practical expression of that stewardship. Done well, it turns “he said/she said” into a shared record of facts, expectations, and commitments. It protects employees from bias by anchoring decisions to observable behavior and role standards; it protects managers and the organization by demonstrating fairness, consistency, and a reasonable course of improvement before escalation.

The modern workplace raises the stakes. Hybrid schedules, distributed teams, heavy collaboration, and shifting priorities make it easier for misalignment to hide and harder for casual coaching to stick. At the same time, customers expect speed and quality, and peers expect equity: two people doing the same job should be held to the same bar. Leaders therefore need a simple, repeatable way to: (1) make standards visible, (2) give timely, specific feedback, (3) track commitments, and (4) decide—based on evidence—whether to continue coaching, formalize a plan, reassign, or exit.

A manager-centric process respects people and performance in equal measure. It starts with clarity (“what good looks like”), adds coaching that invites the employee’s perspective, and uses brief, objective notes to capture what was observed, what was agreed, and by when. If gaps persist, a focused improvement plan with measurable checkpoints provides structure and support. Throughout, leaders watch for root causes—skill, will, or friction—so the intervention matches the problem. Only after genuine opportunity and support does separation become the necessary, fair decision.

This topic equips managers to handle that arc with confidence: from early signals to tough conversations, from weekly check-ins to clean records, from empathy to accountability. The goal is not paperwork; it’s progress. Documentation simply makes progress (or the lack of it) visible and defensible. When leaders practice this discipline, teams experience fewer surprises, higher trust, faster course-corrections, and clearer outcomes—regardless of whether the path ends in turnaround, reassignment, or respectful separation.

Why Should You Attend?

Leaders are expected to deliver results while safeguarding culture—and nothing tests that balance like underperformance. This webinar gives you a modern, manager-ready framework to tackle the hard parts with clarity and confidence. You’ll learn how to set standards that stick, hold focused performance conversations, and turn observations into clean, defensible records—without turning your calendar into paperwork.

What sets this session apart is its practicality. We translate best practices into usable tools you can apply the same day: a simple conversation flow that reduces defensiveness, a five-line documentation method that captures what matters, and a cadence for check-ins that creates momentum instead of surprises. You’ll leave with language that’s objective, fair, and easy to share with your HR partners when it’s time to escalate.

Beyond the tools, you’ll gain a decision path you can trust—when to keep coaching, when to formalize improvement, and when reassignment or separation is the right call. The result is a team that knows “what good looks like,” a manager who acts consistently across people and situations, and a process that lowers risk while raising accountability, even in hybrid or fast-moving environments.

If you want a step-by-step approach that respects people and performance in equal measure, this training is for you. Invest once, use it every week: clearer expectations, faster course-corrections, higher trust, and fewer sleepless nights over difficult conversations. Reserve your seat and equip yourself with a playbook you’ll use the moment the webinar ends.

Who Should Attend?

• Small Business Owners
• CEOs
• CFO
• Company President
• HR
• Leaders
• Managers
• Team Leaders
• Project Managers
• Department Heads
• Supervisors and anyone in the Leadership Role