I was coaching a line manager, helping her to better deal with conflict within her team.
I raised the issue of under or poor performance and how she dealt with that.
She said, “Oh, we don’t deal with that, it has to go to HR, they deal with those issues.”
I said, “Really, how does that turn out?”
She remained silent for a while and then said, “Actually, not much changes. They seem to be stuck in perpetual ‘performance management’ mode.”
I said, “Why aren’t you able to deal with the issue? You are the line manager with direct knowledge of the performance and are on the ground to deal with it. HR aren’t on the ground or present to witness the performance.”
She nodded, “I know, but that’s the system here.”
Too many organisations have this ridiculous system, where line managers are disempowered to do the very job they are meant to do.
HR, if they must get involved, would be wiser expending their energy ensuring line managers are properly trained to deal with under or poor performance.
What do you think?
