How to Handle Underperformance Without Damaging Morale

There’s a lot that’s thrown your way as a business leader, one of which is underperformance. It’s not easy, having to tell someone that they’re not performing as well as they should be. It can feel personal, and it’s something a lot of people want to put off for as long as possible. But, when underperformance is overlooked, it has an impact on the entire business. It’s not just the underperforming individual who is impacted, it’s the wider team, culture and results.

There’s a very fine line between addressing underperformance, but also maintaining morale. You want to have a productive team that respects you as a leader, but you also want them to be engaged, motivated and keen to work hard.

Signs Someone Might Be Underperforming

A lot of people think underperformance is something you can spot a mile away, but that’s not always the case. In fact, it’s often quite subtle, showing itself in ways that are easy to overlook, excuse or not notice altogether. As a leader, you need to recognise the signs early, so you can step in and resolve underperformance before it spirals into something much bigger.

Lack of Enthusiasm or Engagement If someone was once engaged and motivated, and now they seem to be checking out and uninspired, they might be underperforming. If they’re showing very little interest in their work, not participating in team meetings and are contributing less, they might be slowly losing engagement and motivation in what they do.

Not Meeting Targets or Deadlines One of the most obvious signs of underperformance is someone consistently missing targets, goals or deadlines. While occasional delays happen and some are hard to avoid, regularly missing targets or deadline expectations suggests there’s something else going on.

Avoiding Key Responsibilities There’s nothing wrong with delegation, but delegating tasks to the point that they’re avoiding key responsibilities could be a sign of underperforming. If someone regularly hands their main duties to others or avoids taking ownership of tasks they should be managing themselves, it could be a sign that they’re avoiding their role, lacking confidence or unwilling to contribute as much as they could.

Poor Quality of Work If someone isn’t taking pride in their work, they might be underperforming. This could mean increased errors, not paying attention to detail and their work being lower quality than what you’re used to. If they’re standards are slipping, despite you having set clear expectations, their performance could be an issue.

Poor Communication or Responsiveness If someone is slow at replying, missing meetings or they’re not providing clear updates, they might be struggling to stay engaged or organised. This lack of responsiveness and poor communication could mean that they’ve mentally ‘checked out’ of work, and are underperforming as a result.

Handling Underperformance Doesn’t Have to Damage Morale

Pulling someone up on their underperformance doesn’t mean having to damage their morale, or leaving them feeling offended and criticised.

Approach the Conversation with Empathy When you’re handling underperformance, approach the conversation positively. Often, performance problems stem from personal struggles, lack of clarity or disengagement. It’s not always about an employee being lazy. Instead of being accusatory, ask them how they’re feeling about their workload and if they’re facing any challenges. If there’s something getting in the way of their performance, encourage them to tell you. You might find that they’re struggling with personal issues, unclear expectations or burnout, and that’s what’s causing the problem.

Separate the Person from Their Performance Remember, underperformance is a behaviour or an issue with someone’s output, it doesn’t reflect who they are as a person. Make it clear that your concern is about the work, not their worth or place in the team. Highlight the value they bring to the business, and that’s why you want to help them improve. Let them know that it’s not about who they are as an individual, but finding a role and way of working that allows them to thrive. This reinforces that your intention is to support them, not punish or penalise them.

Create an Improvement Plan Together Instead of simply giving someone a list of things to do to improve their performance, work together to create an improvement plan. This should involve specific goals – such as completing a certain amount by the end of the week, or submitting a weekly report detailing their progress – a timeline for reviews and consequences if things don’t improve. When the employee helps shape the plan, they’re more likely to buy in and commit to making changes.

Be Honest and Direct You can be kind and understanding, but also honest and direct. Try to avoid being vague when you’re handling underperformance, as sugar-coating the issue or speaking in general terms can cause confusion. Be clear about what they’re doing that’s falling short of your expectations and how it affects the team or business. Being direct avoids confusion, gives them something to reflect on and builds trust in you as a leader.

Follow Things Up Consistently You won’t solve an underperformance issue after one conversation, so schedule regular check-ins to follow things up. This will give you the chance to review progress, offer feedback, recognise improvements and adjust the plan if you need to. This also shows that you’re invested in their development, not just pointing out their flaws and walking away, leaving them to figure it out themselves.

 

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