Module summary

For every engineering leader, there comes a time when they’re faced with engineers who are underperforming in their roles. This is always tough for the person underperforming, but also for you as a manager. Underperformance, if not addressed correctly, can have tangible consequences both for individuals and for the team. So how can you tackle these situations with integrity and ensure that you’re doing all you can to help people succeed? In this module, we’ll help you set out a plan of action to manage underperformance effectively, taking a look at how to set expectations, manage performance, and deal with any aftershocks.

Module 4 Takeaways and homework

Takeaways from the module:

You learned that :

• Performance management is hard work, and supporting your team through its development is an ongoing process that will continually evolve. 
• To identify a performance issue, you first need to define what good performance means, given how much that can vary depending on your perspective.
• Ensuring alignment of a manager’s and individual’s perceptions with early and regular communication is essential when evaluating performance.
• As a manager, you should hold yourself accountable for supporting your employee through the process.
• Even when someone is not meeting expectations, treating them with dignity and respect is vital. Consistently demonstrate compassion and humanity in the unfortunate instances where we have to fire someone. 

You discussed: 

How to successfully define expectations and ensure that you are setting your team up for success. 

You should be able to:

• Articulate what a successful engineering team means to you
• Translate these characteristics into clear expectations that you share with your team 
• Align your values with your actions, and support your team when they are not meeting the expectations that you set  
• Effectively have these hard conversations with integrity and professionalism in the unfortunate instances where you have to fire someone 

Homework:

Setting expectations is an ongoing process that is constantly evolving, and it’s the very first step you need to take to manage performance with empathy and clarity. So this group exercise will help you carry on successfully defining expectations and ensuring that you are setting your team up for success.

Looking at the six characteristics you noted down during your individual thinking - for each characteristic, note down: 

• How can you make sure that you set that expectation with your team?
• What does success look like? How do you know they are meeting this expectation? 
• What things can you do to monitor your team’s progress?
• How can you support them when they are not meeting the expectations that you set? 

Reflecting on what you just learnt, do you think you clearly articulated what those expectations are to your team? This might be a great opportunity to communicate them to your team!