Dear Farillio member,

You asked our brilliant guest Bill Eckstrom on the Go Far Fast Show:

“Can you help me with some advice on giving some bad feedback to a team member who is not performing? I have tried everything I can think of, but the board has just told me I have to move to a formal performance warning for this person, and I'm worried that if I don't get this right, I could end up creating a mess of things and I am dreading the conversation.”

And Bill said:

Be mighty always, Farillio

Transcript:

“First of all, let me empathise with this person and I'm sorry you have to do this, but in the same breath, it's uncomfortable. You will grow. You could well learn from this. You will be a better coach having done this, whether you do it well or whether you just do it ok, you'll grow from it. So, first of all, understand that this is a growth event. So, in regard to the technical way to handle this conversation: number one, you have to be concise. You have to be able to say: I see, I saw, I witnessed, I've documented. So, you don't ever want to share opinion.

And then you have to be really clear on what you saw, what you witnessed, what you documented. Eye contact is everything in this, and communication skills. Be succinct. Be short. You're not looking for explanations, what you're sharing with this person is so they understand and what you expect down the road. Also, make it positive, which I know may sound weird, but make it positive in the sense that they control it. It is up to them at this point, which route they take and make sure they understand what the route they should take is in order to succeed. So, if you do those things, you've really done your part.

Ultimately, it's up to the person, the direction they take now. As long as they understand what that direction is, it's clear to them and also put a time limit on it too. That would be my advice. And good luck.”

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