A Leadership Screw Driver: The 90 Day Improvement Plan
I was talking with first-line supervisors in a utility company about how to deal with poor performing employees.
"You've gotta put the screws to him!" suggested one supervisor to his colleague who was having trouble managing one particular poor performer.
"I've put so many screws to him he's dead weight!" the supervisor replied.
We all knew what "putting the screws to him" meant -- using rewards and punishments to force change in behavior.
The trouble is, rewards and punishments are the least effective ways of dealing with poor performers. That's because poor performers are usually smart, motivated, and tenacious -- when it comes to poor performing.
To change the behavior of poor performers, avoid the outside-in approach of rewards and punishments and cultivate an inside-out approach.
Aesop understood that. There is the Aesop's fable of the wind and sun competing to see who can remove a coat from a man. The wind tries to blow the coat off, but the man clutches it tightly to his body. Then the sun grows hotter, and the man, perspiring heavily and getting hotter and hotter, gladly rips the coat off.
The leadership lesson is clear: You can bluster and blow to get somebody to accomplish a task, but that's not as effective as setting up a situation in which the person gladly does it.
Here is a way to deal with poor performers using Aesop's lesson: the 90-Day Improvement Plan. A business leader tells me that he uses such plans as tools for change. Each plan is comprised of two pages: the first page pointing out that the individual must improve and the second page detailing the precise ways that improvement must take place.
"Be specific about improvement," he says. "For instance, one leader I gave an Improvement Plan to was very bright but was not getting results. He tended to deal with future, strategic issues; whereas our business wants results now, preferably yesterday. We identified specific ways he could improve his performance in getting results, such as precise calls to make and exact, quick-closing targets to pursue."
The objective of 90-Day Improvement Plans should not be to get rid of people. "Their objective is to improve performance," he says. "Though I do write on the first page, 'If the objectives are not met, further actions, including dismissal, can be taken.'"
He sometimes combines Improvement Plans with the force-ranking of all his leaders into a 20/60/20 continuum. The bottom 20 percent get the Plan. He says, "My objective is to have the bottom 20 percent be indispensable leaders."
Mind you, in developing a 90-day Improvement Plan, keep Aesop's fable in mind and seek not compliance but commitment. The Improvement Plan must not be imposed from without but agreed upon. Here is a four-step process to do that.
First, all parties must agree to develop a 90-Day Improvement Plan. If people are forced to do it, it won't work as it should.
Second, ask the poor performers to describe what should be in it. Remember, you can veto any suggestions. However, it is best if its key components come from the other people. Only after they have run out of suggestions do you incorporate yours.
Third, develop the Plan together, and agree on its action steps.
Fourth, implement it. Have weekly or bi-weekly meetings to insure the Plan is being carried out.
If the Plan is forced upon someone, it becomes just another screw, another imposed reward/ punishment. However, if it is put together with mutual consent, indeed with mutual enthusiasm, it becomes the screw driver by which poor performers may very well gladly put the screws into themselves.
2005 © The Filson Leadership Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
PERMISSION TO REPUBLISH: This article may be republished in newsletters and on web sites provided attribution is provided to the author, and it appears with the included copyright, resource box and live web site link. Email notice of intent to publish is appreciated but not required: mail to: brent@actionleadership.com
The author of 23 books, Brent Filson's recent books are, THE LEADERSHIP TALK: THE GREATEST LEADERSHIP TOOL and 101 WAYS TO GIVE GREAT LEADERSHIP TALKS. He is founder and president of The Filson Leadership Group, Inc. ? and for more than 20 years has been helping leaders of top companies worldwide get audacious results. Sign up for his free leadership e-zine and get a free white paper: "49 Ways To Turn Action Into Results," at http://www.actionleadership.com
 Google News Updated : Wed, 08 Oct 2008 02:50:04 GMT Ayers and Obama later worked on Chicago charitable boards together - CNN
CNN - By Drew Griffin and Kathleen Johnston CHICAGO, Illinois (CNN) -- More than 30 years ago, William Ayers was a fugitive leader of the Weather Underground, an antiwar terrorist group known for its bombings of police stations, the Pentagon and the US ... Connelly: My tea with a 'terrorist' What’s The Obama-Ayers Connection? Publ.Date : Wed, 08 Oct 2008 00:55:44 GMT Bloomberg’s Gift to the People: Moi - New York Times
New York Times - By CLYDE HABERMAN An e-mail pen pal of mine in Alaska (no, not her, someone else) wrote the other day mentioning Marshal Philippe PĂ©tain. UPDATE 1-NYC lawmakers to weigh bill raising term limits Bill to end term limits introduced in City Council Publ.Date : Wed, 08 Oct 2008 01:08:24 GMT Fed's new tool: Business loan bailout - CNNMoney.com
CNNMoney.com - By Chris Isidore, CNNMoney.com senior writer NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- The Federal Reserve announced a new program to help the battered market for short-term business loans - taking its closest step yet to lending directly to businesses. Fed's Credit Tactic Has Small Effect Fed, in emergency move, will lend to companies Publ.Date : Wed, 08 Oct 2008 01:33:46 GMT World markets mixed amid ongoing bank jitters - Forbes
Forbes - By PAN PYLAS 10.07.08, 5:55 PM ET World stock markets were mixed on Tuesday as banking stocks on both sides of the Atlantic took another pounding despite the US Federal Reserve's announcement that it will buy huge amounts of short-term debt in an ... TOPWRAP 15-Fed steps in but US stocks dive; UK to rescue banks Patrice Hill THE WASHINGTON TIMES Publ.Date : Tue, 07 Oct 2008 22:03:58 GMT Obama, McCain stretch facts in debate - The Associated Press
The Associated Press - WASHINGTON (AP) - Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain stretched facts, sometimes past the breaking point, as they addressed the financial crisis and more during their second presidential debate. McCain, Obama Laud Buffett When Asked About Treasury Candidates Obama-McCain debate Question 2: How will Publ.Date : Wed, 08 Oct 2008 02:01:16 GMT Obama And McCain On Small Business - CBS News
CBS News - The fifth installment of the series examines where each candidate stands on helping small businesses. Supported the government bailout aimed at easing the credit crunch. Obama-McCain debate Question 5: What sacrifices Ad Wars: McCain Dishonorable and Obama Untrustworthy Publ.Date : Tue, 07 Oct 2008 23:28:47 GMT Judge Orders 17 Guantánamo Detainees Freed - New York Times
New York Times - By WILLIAM GLABERSON WASHINGTON - A federal judge on Tuesday ordered the Bush administration to release 17 detainees at Guantánamo by the end of the week, the first such ruling in nearly seven years of legal disputes over the administration’s detention ... White House "Deeply Concerned" With Guantanamo Ruling US judge orders Guantanamo Uighurs freed Publ.Date : Wed, 08 Oct 2008 01:49:29 GMT RSS For Web Pages |
PARLOT::Ebooks, Scripts,
Websites, and more... Industrial/clinical psychology and applied psychiatry have made tremendous strides in... Read More There is a pervasive assumption that small firms are more... Read More The meeting started like a hundred others before. There were... Read More Hurting your sales efforts can be accomplished easily with the... Read More Hiring employees is a huge responsibility. Before hiring anyone, be... Read More One of the first questions we ask a prospect or... Read More The practice of outsourcing business processes has long been subject... Read More Change is not simple. Why do we repeat behavior that... Read More When executives see themselves as solely responsible for the overall... Read More I've just been reading about the frustrations of a Human... Read More Many business owners are sabotaging their business without even realizing... Read More The industrial age is over. Organizations still stuck in the... Read More Faulty information costs you money! Which of these popular business... Read More As a training manager, there are two important aspects to... Read More Rejection hurts. No one likes to give it or to... Read More Every since serving a hitch in the military, I have... Read More Many people believe that everyone sees the world exactly the... Read More Service Level Agreements, or "SLA's" are tricky but useful mechanisms... Read More The heart of a fool is in his mouth, but... Read More "Nothing inspires confidence in a business man sooner than punctuality,... Read More Keeping and Motivating the Best Employees ... Read More Can Project Managers prevent projects from slipping?Ask a techie to... Read More In a management role procrastination can seriously hold back progress... Read More There are 12 essential elements of a successful internal communications... Read More Sometimes when I conduct my workshop on Effective Meetings, one... Read More
Adsense
websites
The Art of Motivation and Need Fulfillment
Creativity and Innovation - Large Firms Versus Small Firms
Solving the Problem Solving Problem
How To Decrease Profits Without Really Trying
Five Steps to Better Employee Management
Know the Source of Business
Balancing Power in Outsource Contract Agreements
Writing and Revising Your Life Story
Demise of the Lone Ranger Manager: A Lesson in Management Communication Style
Multiple Channels, Multiple Times
Are You At The Mercy Of Computer Geeks?
Why Soft Skills?
Popular Business Misconceptions Cost You Money!
How to Manage Your People Well: Tips for Managers of Training
How to Say No
Einstein, The Universe, And Leadership
The Boss Didn?t Understand Why His Staff Wasn?t Reading His Mind
Service Level Agreement (SLA) Boot Camp
Three Ways to Transmit Loud and Clear
Punctuality in Business: What it Says About You
Keeping and Motivating the Best Employees
Project Management - Preventing Project Slips
Procrastination and JDI!
Internal Communication: 12 Essential Elements
Why Training Fails
Affordable and Reliable Web Hosting Starting at $4.49/Month
Organisational Culture for Continuous Improvement
I have been working with leading Business Improvement guru, Tim... Read More
Selecting Top Talent: Improve Your Batting Average
I recently gave a presentation to a group of business... Read More
The Gift of Gratitude
Gratitude might seem like a soft or even an obvious... Read More
The Leadership Alignment Model
Some time ago we had the privilege of working with... Read More
Six Sigma Training 101 ? Better Management Basics
What is Six Sigma?Six Sigma is a quality management program... Read More
Using an Appraisal to Benefit Your Organization
PERFORMANCE APPRAISALS BENEFIT THE ORGANIZATION:Appraisals help spot employees with potential... Read More
Time Management Tip: Stop Micro-Managing Employees
If I was a fly on the wall what would... Read More
Effective Meetings: Why Most Meetings are a Waste of Time
Whether your company holds one meeting a week or dozens... Read More
Top 5 Services Your Company?s Accounting Department Should Outsource
Accounting is one area which every company has to maintain... Read More
Catch Your Staff Doing Something Right
A long time ago, I learned something about being a... Read More
Managing After Downsizing
So, you survived the downsizing. Your company did something that... Read More
Managing People - No More Mr Tough Guy
I believe the media and our culture sends the wrong... Read More
Employees Commit Corporate Fraud
Imagine the following scenario; Ten years ago you decided to... Read More
Why Do Managers Create Low Morale? Or Does My Bum Look Big In This?
Why do managers create low morale as a product of... Read More
Innovation Management ? Selecting Good Ideas
Creativity can be defined as problem identification and idea generation... Read More
Is Your Management Style Assisting or Hurting Your Business?
Many times business owners can have significant differences in management... Read More
CEO: The Key To Fix ingThe Marketing/Sales Collaboration Problem
We all know that achieving better alignment, synergy and cooperation... Read More
Knowledge Management - Leadership Behaviours Which Encourage Knowledge-Sharing
The concept of knowledge management or knowledge sharing makes intellectual... Read More
Morale Boosters: Feed the Troops First
When economic conditions turn tough or when the heavy work... Read More
Innovation Management ? Measuring Failure!
Creativity can be defined as problem identification and idea generation... Read More
Innovation Management ? Six Crucial Steps
Creativity can be defined as problem identification and idea generation... Read More
Supervisor-Employee Relations: Tips For Managers
Supervisor-employee relations are a critical part of a work place... Read More
Doing More With Less
This is a bottom-line environment.Decreasing the downtime of revenue producing... Read More
Forget The Sandwich Technique
Do you remember being told to use the "sandwich" technique... Read More
Action Learning: Its More Than OJT
For centuries companies have used on-the-job training (OJT). OJT works... Read More
Business Management |