Performance Management

How a performance management system can save you money

A well-constructed performance management system means you can determine if an employee’s work is classified as poor. And if so, how you should deal with it.

Poor performance means a consistent failure of an employee to complete his or her work to the required standard. Failure to fulfill expected duties, sloppy work, and missing deadlines can be a drag on the productivity and reputation of a business.

In order to determine whether an employee’s work performance is classified as poor, you need to look at the quality and timeliness of the work.

You should work with your employees to ensure these performance issues are nipped in the bud. The performance management process needs to be conducted sensitively.

How should minor performance issues be managed?

Minor performance issues should be dealt with an informal discussion between the employer and the employee.

During the discussion, they work towards a mutually agreed pathway to reaching better performance. The employee should commit to trying to meet specific outcomes or adopting specific practices to improve their performance or conduct. The employer should provide the employee with support and guidance to help reach these outcomes.

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How should major performance issues be managed?

More serious performance or misconduct issues should be dealt with by way of formal counselling.

The employee should be given formal notice of the counselling, and provided with the opportunity to bring a support person.

During the counselling, the employer and the employee should agree on a performance improvement plan. This plan would require the employee to meet certain goals or benchmarks within a given period of time.

If a performance improvement plan is not complied with, the employee should be issued with a final warning and written notice requiring them to attend a final counselling discussion.

A further performance improvement plan may be issued. If it is not complied with, the employer will be in a position to either demote the employee or terminate their employment with notice.

How can we help?

We can help you to manage the performance of your employees by:

  • Drafting performance policies that foster a culture of high performance in the workplace and outline how performance issues will be dealt with.
  • Drafting performance management plans in accordance with contemporary best practice.
  • Advising you as to how your company should deal with specific instances of poor performance.

Please get in touch to learn how our lawyers can help you to develop a performance driven culture at your workplace.

Give us a call – (02) 9199 8597