Let’s say you’ve got a person on your team who regularly rocks up late, or who always falls behind, misses the mark or deadlines despite your best attempts to coach them and direct them. Or maybe even that person that is crossing the line with their co-workers or clients.

Maybe it not quite as dramatic as inappropriate behaviour or poor performance. You maybe have someone who’s style just doesn’t gel with your team and causes disruption, which creates conflict. You need to act as this can spread like mosquitos after the first autumn rain.

When do you get to the point of realising that the counselling, coaching, extra training and warnings end? When is it time to cut the cord on the person that is clearly not working out?

There is no magic bullet, when it comes to knowing exactly when, but you’ll want to make certain that you:

Have a clear handle on the issues. Are there extenuating circumstance at the heart of the issue? When the person turns up late, talk to them right there and then. This is really important as it sends a clear message to the team and sets the standard for behaviour. You’re digging a hole for yourself if you shy away from the issues.

Put the employee on notice. Clarify the expectation once again and record clear guidelines, in writing, on how you expect them to conduct themselves moving forward

Hold them accountable. Give your employee a reasonable time to improve and turn things around. Schedule reviews during this period to evaluate their progress and keep those appointments.

Document, document, document. Capture all the issues and times that you discussed your concerns along with any coaching or other support tools provided to help or assist them turning the issues around. Agree these actions with the employee and have them countersign that they understand what is expected of them.

Be consistent. If you start down this road, you must follow through, by doing so you set the standard for the team. Let this slip and you’re going to have one heck of a mess to deal with.

For better or for worse, it’s not like ‘The Apprentice’ where you can simply fire an employee on the spot. There are no short cuts. If you’ve followed and documented the process, and your employee is still not hitting the mark, you are at a point where it might be time to let your employee go. You want to make doubly sure you’ve followed all your own policies.

Another piece of advice, don’t unfairly single a person out no matter how much they might be pushing your buttons. In other words, never aggressively pursue one employee who has performance issues when you know that there are others on staff with the exact same issues unless you are interested in fighting a harassment or discrimination claim.

Our number one tip: Be consistent. Be consistent with your expectations and with how you address workplace issues otherwise quite frankly you’re going to be forced to write a big cheque.