Letting someone fail at work - aibu to let it happen?

[MrsBede]

In brief, I have a deputy who has failed to perform since appointment. I have followed all procedures to deal with this but my organisation is poorly led and I have limited support from those above - eg I should have a line manager but the post is vacant. We're public sector.

A senior manager has now told me my deputy needs to be given a project to lead on and when it flops it will be the point at which the lack of performance is finally dealt with. It's horrible, but the team and our clients are being detrimentally affected by this person's lack of competence so it has to happen - I've tried so much to bring them on but they just haven't responded.

So the project has been explained to them and they have got started. There are already issues becoming apparent but they have now sent me details of their next steps and it's really poor. Do I intervene or just let it play out? It will be a fuck up (not dangerous or anything) and should bring things to a head, but what if they come back and say they ran it past me first and I didn't voice concerns?

My problem is lack of support from above but there is none, so MN - please help!

@TiredButDancing

While I completely see the reasoning, this cannot work. As head of the team, ultimately, a team member's failure is on you. In this case, the person has emailed you asking for feedback so even more, it's now on your shoulders (it also wouldn't surprise me if the person has done this knowing perfectly well that he's not up to the job and this way, can palm the work off on you).

Having said all that, it is NOT up to you to redo the work so that it's competent. respond with the areas of weakness - "eg how do you propose to handle the fact that during Phase 1 everyone is still working from home and that therefore this is not practical?". You don't have to redo it to provide a different plan.

Also, assuming that having to redo the work means that the person is now further behind on deadlines, flag that: "If we're going to meet the deadlines for this project, phase 1 needs to start by 1 August so please ensure you have thought through these issues and presented solutions in time to go through the approval process/ do the preparation work/ whatever."

So you're documenting what he is doing wrong, but offering him opportunities to fix it. Realistically, it seems unlikely that he IS going to fix it, so the senior person's plan for him to fail is likely, but this is a safer way to manage it.

This sounds like the most sensible approach to me.

I am assuming this is not a personal issue but a professional one with this individual. Let’s not forget this is a person clearly struggling for what ever reason, maybe under qualified for job or issues going on at home. I think it’s uncaring to set them up to fail it could have a detrimental affect on their mental health. I think the three of you should sit and discuss the problems and find a better way of resolving of them.

@Orf1abc

As their manager you should be offering feedback and support to improve. Why are you not doing this?

OP said: "I have followed all procedures to deal with [person's underperformance]" and "I've tried so much to bring them on but they just haven't responded."

@chickenyhead

Also, as the project is new, it isn't strictly evidence of incompetence within their actual role.

Surely that depends on whether their role involves taking on projects as need arises?

If its their first project, in a new role? Training?

No you should not do this, all you have shown yourself to be is somebody that is not up to their own job either. Your management style is to let people fail? You might find they deal with you as well.

"I have followed all procedures to deal with [person's underperformance]" and "I've tried so much to bring them on but they just haven't responded."

Then you clearly need better procedures. Setting them up for failure simply isn't an ethical way to deal with underperformance. A good set of procedures will naturally lead to a formal dismissal that will stand up to scrutiny.

Relay your concerns to your superior - IN WRITING.

However they respond, get it IN WRITING.

Sorry to shout, but it is essential.

I also agree with TiredButDancing. Not giving them any helpful feedback will reflect badly on you, so really this is damage limitation. Make sure everything's in writing so you can show you have provided support and despite that they couldn't cope. Good luck

@ChazsBrilliantAttitude

Send back a list of questions that would point them in the right direction if they were competent. If they fail to act on them you can say guidance was offered in a form that encouraged reflection and reassessment of the proposed approach without stepping in and taking over as this was a development opportunity for x. Document everything and keep Senior Manager updated so they don’t have plausible deniability.

This from Chaz sounds like the correct approach.

Review, offer guidance in a way that is highlighting issues for them to reflect on - NOT solving problems for them - and separately document that you have done so, but consider that failure to adequately consider & address X, Y, Z in the first place (post extensive already documented training) means that you consider there is a failure of capability at this first stage.

You have to give them the opportunity to succeed as well as to fail. You just have to do it in a way that’s not helping them or bending over backwards.

Did you post about this recently? If not - there’s a very similar thread so you may some advice there.

@VerticalHorizon

A company that sets a task for an employee knowingly expecting them to fail is 'setting them up'.

A company that sets up its employees, however poor their performance isn't a good company.

A manager who facilitates this isn't a good manager.

Not necessarily. If an employee just isn’t capable of the job then giving them a task within their role isn’t setting the up even if you are sure they aren’t capable of it. It’s a necessary part of documenting that they aren’t capable.

What does seem off here is that OP seems to indicate that the plan is to give them the task and provide no support. What should be being down is something more like TiredButDancing’s suggestion - task within role is given. Feedback and support is provided but work the employee can’t do to the required standard isn’t done for them. Failure to meet requirements is then documented (assuming they do fail) and can be used, ultimately, to fire them.

I’m no expert but I think if they are asking for feedback and advice you absolutely should give it
If they are as rubbish as your OP suggests then there will probably still be an issue.
Don’t take over but give advice and support as you would be expected to do with a deputy.

You have been really badly advised by your senior manager. A proper capability process would go something like this:

• Poor performing employee is set targets to demonstrate improvement / competence, and told about the support/oversight that will be provided (e.g. management review of all work).
• Completion of the project to a certain standard will be one of these targets.
• Employee sends project work to you for review.
• You provide feedback on everything that is crap AND DOCUMENT IT.
• Repeat as necessary until end of project.
• At the end of the project - provide feedback on the outcome, and on the amount of review changes that were required at various stages. This can be used as evidence of poor performance, because a competent employee doesn't usually need their manager to make extensive changes.
• Set new targets for next project etc. as appropriate.
• Repeat as necessary until either the employee has improved, or they are managed out on capability grounds.

You don't just let the project fail, because ultimately that will land at your feet, not your deputy's.

If its their first project, in a new role? Training?

It isn't their first project and they aren't new in role - it's been a few years. Project is also quite a grand word for it to be honest. It's a run of the mill event and entirely the kind of thing they were employed to do and should be able to do with little support.

I think it’s uncaring to set them up to fail it could have a detrimental affect on their mental health.

I agree, but I have to say that my mental health is suffering as well. I'm not getting a kick out of this and the whole thing has been incredibly hard to deal with.

I though the post from tiredbutdancing was helpful too and I'll take the advice, as well as all the advice to kepp records etc, which I have been doing all along anyway.

This sounds very much like my work situation, except I’m in a junior position, it is my line manager who is not performing (and as a result me and his manager have been picking up the pieces). I’m on barely above NMW but there have been periods where I haven’t had time or energy to cook a decent meal or deal with my personal life because I’ve been working late to catch up on my own work after dealing with his mistakes, mistakes that at times he has brushed under carpet until they escalated.

As a result I am leaving my post (and public sector altogether). It has been ongoing for 2 years and the pressure of it has made me ill to be honest.

I think the suggestion of replying that they should review XYZ is a good one, even if you know that they probably won’t absorb what you are telling them.

Btw: I've been there myself (attempting to manage out a incompetent employee in a public sector organisation with limited support), and can really empathise. It's a very long hard slog.

@Georgyporky

Relay your concerns to your superior - IN WRITING.

However they respond, get it IN WRITING.

Sorry to shout, but it is essential.

Ha! The senior manager will never put this in writing. On a hiding to nothing with that one.

Could you make it clear to the employee again what you expect them to be able to do. And tell them that if they can't do it, they need to let you know immediately so you can bring in support. But also make it clear that if they can't cope with the responsibility then you're going to have to negotiate a reduction in pay band to match what they are capable of doing?

There are already issues becoming apparent but they have now sent me details of their next steps and it's really poor. Do I intervene or just let it play out? ... what if they come back and say they ran it past me first and I didn't voice concerns?
Can you refer them to a manual / policy / protocol?

people see this person doing less than them and being paid more. It's not just incompetence but lies and now rudeness and defensiveness as well.
Can you bat it off as "this is basic stuff, I shouldn't have to hold your hand to this degree. Please re-do the next steps and report back in xxx days." (The sorrowful "You've let yourself down, you've let me down, you've let the whole company down")

Not necessarily. If an employee just isn’t capable of the job then giving them a task within their role isn’t setting the up even if you are sure they aren’t capable of it. It’s a necessary part of documenting that they aren’t capable.

If it was to measure them with an open mind, of course. But that's not the case here. The die is already cast, and this is a task designed for them to fail in order to dismiss them. If you are not confident in an employee being able to carry out a task, you shouldn't be giving them that task, OR you should be explaining to them that you understand it's a step up, and you'll give them the support they'll need to grow into the role.

If I was a client of this company and discovered you'd assigned an employee to work on my project expecting them to fail, what would that say about your ethics, and about your attitude towards my company?

Speak to HR and ask for advice on how to performance manage her. There will be set processes you need to follow and they should support you. It's very time consuming and frustrating, currently going through this with one of my team members.

If she's been in role less than two years then it's easier to manage someone out.

Also, in the public sector one poorly delivered project is never going to be enough to dismiss them. Not in a million years.

1984isnow

Sorry to hear that you're going through this but even worse by the sounds of it . Good luck finding something better.

Ha! The senior manager will never put this in writing. On a hiding to nothing with that one.

Exactly - he rarely replies to emails and even in meetings says things like "I'll deny this, but...", "don't minute this, but..." It's a bloody nightmare.

I agree with those saying you need to flag it up to the senior person who allocated the shit employee this task.

Forward the senior the work you’ve been sent to look through and explain how worried you are at the standard and how many times you’ve had to support this person to the detriment of your other work. Let the senior manager decide what to do next with SE (shit employee).