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 He was upset and it showed. I could hear it in his voice. "Scott, when I
told him I was not happy with his work performance and that I was
terminating him, he just stared at me and his face turned white.
He actually thought he was performing well in his role as one of our key
executives." My client went on to tell me that their final meeting lasted
over two and a half hours, and concluded in a mutual explosion of emotion.
The fired employee ran out yelling vulgar profanities, full of feelings of
hostility and disbelief. My client, a dignified CEO of a large professional
services firm, just sat there in solitude after the meeting with feelings of
emptiness and hollowness. And then he wondered if he made the right
decision in terminating his employee.
"Tell me about the direction and expectations you gave the employee when you
first hired him last April," I said.
"What are you talking about?" he responded. "I just hired him and expected
him to do what he was supposed to do. He's been in this industry a long
time. He should know what his job is."
"So, what you're telling me is that through your mental telepathy and his
psychic abilities, you were thinking that he could read your mind to know
what was expected of him without you clearly expressing it. is that what
you're saying?" I responded in my gentle but firm style of tough love. I
thought I had probably crossed the line.but the point was definitely made.
Silence ensued for nearly 30 seconds on the other end of the telephone line.
I was relieved when I heard what was barely understood as, "I see your
point." My client discovered for the very first time that he never clearly
communicated his expectations of performance to the new hire, and that the
employee honestly thought he was performing well in his role.
When you bring on a new employee, how do you clarify the performance
expectations to increase the odds of a productive and happy work
relationship between you and your new hire? Follow these three steps the
next time you bring on a new member of your team.
1) First, tell your new hire what the expectations are. Move beyond duties
and responsibilities and enter into the realm of very clear and specific
expectations. Use these SMART objectives: How do you specifically define
success? How do you measure success? What action steps need to be taken for
them to be considered successful? What are the results you need? What
timelines are associated with these issues?
2) Second, ask them how they see themselves performing at their peak
performance levels in that role. What is their action plan to achieve their
goals? How will they use their past experiences to hit their targets? What
specific steps need to be taken?
3) And third, set up an ongoing system to measure their progress toward goal
achievement. But even before you and your new hire establish goals, you need
to make sure that this new employee knows how the role fits in exactly with
the accomplishment of the team goals. Show the big picture. Draw out an
organizational chart so they can see where they fit in relation to everyone
else. Show them exactly how their individual contribution helps the team
reach its level of collective achievement. Show them why they matter to you
and to their colleagues on a personal level. Leadership is very personal,
so you need to bring those expectations to the personal level.
Hopefully, by beginning the relationship with proper expectations, you will
help your staff perform at their peak performance levels, which means that
both you and your team will be pleased with how the working relationship
develops. And you'll never find yourself in the position of terminating an
employee who thought they were succeeding.
Scott Love improves leadership and sales performance in companies by working
as an author, columnist, and professional speaker. He can be reached at
www.scottlove.com.
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