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“Where are you right now?” “What else do you need to do to get there?” Questions that encourage
action-oriented thinking, “What alternative courses of action could help you move forward?” “What
might help or hinder your progress?” Questions that commit them to ownership and action, “What will
you do now?” “By when?” “How will you measure progress and success?” Be specific with the use of
you/your in the questions—it reinforces that the responsibility sits with them.

7. People getting too comfy? Challenge and support them. Remember, real development is not
cozy or safe—it comes from varied, stressful, and adverse tasks that require us to learn to do
something new or different, or fail. It involves real work. It’s rewarding but scary. Be open with your
people about this. Work with them to identify challenges that force them out of their comfort zone.
Consider tasks that are no longer developmental for you but would be for others and delegate them.
Trade tasks and assignments between two people—have them do each other’s work. Assign a task
that the person hasn’t done before. Provide support. It sends a message that there’s safety on the
other side. It helps people cope with the pain of developing while maintaining a positive view of
themselves as a capable, worthy, valuable person who can learn and grow. Without support, the
developmental experience may overwhelm them rather than foster learning. Cheer from the sidelines
and celebrate their accomplishments, even the smallest.

8. Underperformers? Take action. Few people come to work with the intention of doing a bad job.
Find out the cause and take action to address it. Perhaps they haven’t had adequate opportunity,
support, and time to achieve the required performance level? If you can offer more, and the role is
achievable for them, create a development plan for them that focuses on lifting performance. Maybe
the role isn’t suited to their talents. You may need to support them in moving on, either to a more
suitable role at the same level within the organization or one with less responsibility. In some cases, it
may be more appropriate to initiate a process to exit them from the organization. Demoting or exiting
a person is a tough thing to do. But, longer-term, it may be the most effective action for the future
performance of both your workgroup and the individual.

Want to learn more? Take a deep dive…

Colan, L. (2013, July 29). 4 Keys to coaching underperforming employees. Inc.
Coutu, D. (2008, December 29). What coaches can do for you. Harvard Business Review Blog
Network.
Joseph, C. (n.d.). The ways to challenge employees. Chron.
Murphy Paul, A. (2013, March 18). Four ways to give good feedback. Time.

9. Focused on developing skills for today? Look to the future. Take a longer-term view of
developing talent. Of creating a workforce that can meet the demands of today while rising to the
challenges of tomorrow. Start with the current state. Where is the organization now? What skills and
capabilities does it have in place? What does it need? Then look to the future. Where is the
organization moving to? What skills and capabilities will be critical to future success? What’s the gap
between the current and future state? You may have the right level of skill and capability in place.
You may find there are gaps. Either way, you’ll have the clarity you need to create and implement a
longer-term strategy for talent development. Involve others in the creation of the strategic plan where

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