Performance Management Tools and Resources
"Nine-Plus-One Checklist" for Diagnosing Performance Problems
When things go wrong with an employee's performance, one of the first
things a supervisor must do is to stop and to ask some critical questions.
Diagnosing potential causes of what has gone wrong needs to be the first
step any supervisor takes. The answers discovered through these questions
help determine the actions that should follow.
 Here's
a handy checklist called the "Nine-Plus-One
Checklist" that can
guide the supervisor in exploring potential system and employee causes
of a performance problem. A "no" response to any of the first
nine questions suggests that the systems supporting (or not) the employee's
performance may need to be addressed by the supervisor before focusing
exclusively on employee causes of poor performance. A "no"
response means that you have some work to do in order to provide appropriate
support and guide the employee towards great performance.
A "yes" response to any of the first nine questions means
that you have most likely done the right things to establish a strong
foundation to support great performance. If the supervisor can answer
"yes" without equivocation, then he or she can begin shifting
his or her focus to exploring potential “employee causes”
of the performance problem the "Plus One" item on the checklist.
The Nine-Plus-One Checklist
- Have you made performance expectations clear? Does the person know
what is expected of him/her? If necessary, have you defined how work
should be done? [Note: for most jobs the “what” is far
more important than the “how”]
- Does the employee know that his/her performance is not what it should
be? Do you let the employee know when he/she is not meeting job expectations?
- Have you set performance goals that are challenging but realistic?
Is the workload reasonable? Are you punishing your best performers
by giving them most of the challenging work? Do the goals cause the
person to stretch her capabilities in the right way?
- Does the employee have the skills, knowledge, and abilities to do
the job? Has the person received the necessary trainings? Has the
job changed such that new skills and knowledge are required? Has he/she
outgrown the job?
- Have you provided the employee access to the tools, equipment, resources,
people, and information resources needed to get the job done? Does
the person know where to access these resources?
- Are the working relationships between the employee and his co-workers
positive and cooperative? Are there conflicts between the employee
and other co-workers? Is the employee a potential target of unfair
treatment, discrimination, or harassment by others? Are people withholding
information from the employee?
- Does the employee know that he/she can seek you out to clarify job
duties, ask for direction and support, solve problems, or identify
ways to improve job performance? Or, instead, are you just too busy
to "touch base”, share issues, and discuss concerns?
- Have you consistently provided clear and positive rewards to the
employee and other workers when performance standards are met or exceeded?
Do you consistently withdraw positive rewards from those who fail
to meet expectations? Do you make it clear that quality performance
matters?
- Does the employee have a physical, mental, or emotional disability
that might limit abilities to do the job? Does the employee hold back
from certain tasks? Do you see patterns in work behaviors that suggest
limited physical or mental capacities?
Plus One
 Does
the employee exhibit any behavior that suggest that he/she experiences
personal problems, lacks desire or motivation, demonstrates inflexibility
in working with others, exhibits resistance to change, or has a difficult
time accepting orders from others?
A Word of Caution
Use this checklist only as a way to begin exploring an employee's performance
problem. It is dangerous for anyone to assume that he/she has done everything
right for the employee (e.g., answered the first nine questions with
a "yes"). Therefore, the checklist should first serve as a
reminder to the supervisor of the things to look for before having a
one-on-one talk with an employee. Second, it should give the supervisor
a framework for discussing causes, and then potential solutions with
the employee who has the performance problem during the interview/performance
discussion.
Reference: http://www.gbmc.org/traininganddevelopment/performancemgmt.cf
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