STOP Playing the Waiting Game: Gently ‘Encourage’ Marginal Employees to Move On
Prevent mediocre techs from draining your profits. Discover how to deal with low performing employees while developing a team of rockstars!
KickStart: Respectfully but firmly pull the plug on non-performing employees for the sake of ALL concerned. Read on to review the stakes involved…
Come on, admit it. Sometimes you accidentally hire a semi-marginal employee. I’ve been there! Suddenly, you recognize you’ve got nothing more than a warm body taking up space in one of your trucks.
Sure, if an employee is actively toxic, completely negligent, or stealing, you cut them loose immediately. (I HOPE.) But then there are the folks in between…
I call them the “not bad enough to fire but no chance of ever becoming a key employee” people. And no, not even Steve Toburen, the King of Acronyms is going to convert this one! Instead?
Simply put, deep down inside you know these poor folks are never going to remotely grow into the Very Best People your business desperately needs. Come on, you KNOW what you must do… 🫣
And yet, what happens? We all dread confrontation. Plus, nobody wants to pay unemployment! So, you just “hunker down,” avoid daily contact, and secretly hope/pray your loser quits on their own! 🛐
Steve’s TRUE confessions: I played this “waiting game” for years with marginal workers. However, I finally realized my strategy was a massive trap. Read the next paragraph closely…
NOTHING (and I do mean NOTHING) is more critical to your financial future—and your personal sanity—than constantly recruiting stellar employees who buy into your shared vision! 🎉🎊💖🎈
In a residential services company, you aren’t just selling repairs; you are managing the Emotional Dynamics of a nervous homeowner. So, how do you convert this mess into an ecstatic ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ review?
It all comes down to the relationship your tech forges with their client. Focus on this- when you send someone into a customer’s home, you are trusting this tech with your brand, your reputation and yes, your family’s financial future! 😦
You really are staking everything on one young, insecure and likely very immature person! Make you bit nervous? If so, GREAT- you should be! So, let’s get started!
Remember, in a small company, your roster is limited. I call it your “Employee Totem Pole.“ Every single person on this pole MUST at least have the potential to grow with your company.
You simply can’t afford to let this “totem pole” be plugged up while you wait months—or even years—for a loser (or even mediocre) tech to finally leave on their own
NOTE: Once someone quits could you hire yet another loser? Sure, absolutely! But the longer you put things off the longer it will be till you just might land a superstar!
So, when my coaching clients ask me how to handle their low-performing employees, my answer is simple: “Respectfully and gently help them move on with their life!”
Think about it. Having this difficult conversation quickly is better for everyone.
1. Your “just-not-working-out” employee deserves to find a job where they can actually excel. More importantly…
2. Your A-players want to work with other A-players. Working with slackers drags down the whole team including you! (Remember, running your business should be an absolute joy!) 😁
3. The longer you postpone this process, the more everyone (including your poor marginal worker who is in over their head) suffers.
HOWEVER...
If you’re going to fire fast, you better have your house in order for the next hire. New employees need—and deserve—to know exactly what is expected and how to do the physical work the way you want it done.
Build a System: You must develop a day-by-day, written Fast Track Training system. If you don’t, you’ll just repeat this same sad “hire/ fire/ hire again” cycle over and over. This employee revolving door exacts a brutal financial and emotional toll on everyone involved.
Test Drive Your Hires: Institute a Trial Interview where your best candidate rides along with you or your best tech before offering them a full-time gig. (Be sure to pay your candidate for their time.)
Use Strategic Partnerships: Partnering with a temporary staffing agency is a brilliant hack here—keep this candidate on the agency’s payroll and Workers’ Comp for the Trial Interview period to lower your risk.
And for your great employees who DO stick around? They need performance feedback along with public recognition and rewards for their superb efforts.
The ultimate formula to sum this all up? Hire slow, train well, praise constantly... and if they just aren’t getting on board, FIRE FAST! (I’ll share the exact working to use to “gently terminate” an employee soon!) 😎
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