As with most issues in life, the best way to help people meet your expectations is to tell them what you need. Directly, clearly, as plainly as possible, in a manner that’s honest and considerate without mincing words or watering anything down.

As an HR professional, managing employee performance is an important task but, at times, it can be a very difficult one. Each employee’s abilities, expectations and aspirations will be different, but people in the same job will need to be able to meet the same objectives and goals or there will be tension within the team.

Luckily, there are some really simple steps you can implement to manage employee performance, to make sure people are hitting their targets and feeling supported in the process.

Establish clear performance objectives and expectations.

Whether this comes from you or another manager, make it clear to each employee what is expected from them in their position. This can be everything from arriving and starting work at a particular time each day, to how many deliverables they turn over in the course of a week or month, to bringing in new clients and taking a certain number of meetings each month.

Talk it over.

There’s no such thing as too much communication when it comes to making sure people are doing their jobs. This isn’t about micromanaging, it’s about handling problems as they arise. But open and frequent communication also gives you the opportunity to praise someone for their hard work and let them know they’re appreciated. Regular feedback is so important to ensure people stay on the right track and get recognized for going above and beyond. If problems do come up, work together to find a solution. Coaching can help your employees understand that nothing is insurmountable and provides them with the inspiration to keep going when things are tough.

Conduct performance evaluations.

During the annual review process, or at any interval if there’s a problem beginning to develop, go through the employee’s objectives and review it with them. It’ll help you to understand how much work they’re supposed to be doing and what tasks are prioritized and it gives you the chance to make sure the employee has the resources and tools needed to meet those goals. If there’s a problem, talk it out: What obstacles or difficulties are preventing them from successfully completing their assignments? Reviewing objectives and expectations can bring into sharp focus for you both where things need to be improved.

If there’s a problem, work to solve it.

Even star employees go through rough patches. If someone’s underperforming at work, pull them aside and talk about it. Maybe there’s something going on at home that’s impairing their ability to concentrate at work; maybe there’s a conflict with a coworker that’s making it difficult to get their job done. Or maybe it’s something else: Maybe they feel overlooked, underappreciated or otherwise have become unhappy in their position. Or maybe they’ve had extra work assigned to them that you’re not aware of, resulting in a drastic change of their day-to-day work compared with their job description. Most of the time, the employee is aware that they’re not doing what’s expected of them, or they’re letting some things slide. Get to the bottom of it and find a way forward that brings them back to where they need to be and so they have the support they need to be successful.

If problems persist, or get worse, it might be time to have an even harder conversation: One in which you’ll need to ask the employee to leave the company. If you work closely with an employee and help them achieve their performance objectives, however, the company is improved and the employee feels more confident in their abilities.

Looking for new employees?

If you need to hire new members for your team, or if you’d like more advice on how to navigate difficult HR situations, call Bishop & Company! Our recruiters are experts at finding great candidates for offices and we’ll be happy to help find some for you! Give Bishop & Company a call today and let’s get started.