How to Coach an Employee Who’s Struggling to Perform

Do you have a difficult employee on your team—someone who might be underperforming or resistant to taking feedback? Do you know how to help them? Melvin Smith says that coaching can be harder than you realize. Smith is a professor at the Weatherhead School of Management at Case Western Reserve University and coauthor of the book Helping People Change: Coaching with Compassion for Lifelong Learning and Growth. First you have to figure out which approach will work well for that specific employee. But you also have to know how to measure the success of your coaching and when it’s time to move on to other options—like performance management. In this episode, he offers advice for what to do when your new employee is slacking off, or when they’re struggling to adjust to your organization’s culture and communication style. He also has suggestions for coaching two direct reports who are in conflict with each other.