| Performance Improvement Plan Template | Performance Improvement Plan Samples |
 |
 |
Help Underperforming Employees with a Performance Improvement Plan Template
Advertisement
Are you the manager, owner or crew leader of a business or company with one or more employees in your charge? Could you benefit from a computerized and adaptable document template, one which you can use to create a detailed plan of action aimed at helping one or more of your employees to improve in certain areas of the business? If you think you could, you might just find a performance improvement plan template to be quite beneficial and exactly what you need to measure your employees’ performance.
Whether you’re the owner of a small upstart company with just a handful of new employees, or an executive manger of a large multinational company, with hundreds of associates in your charge, there are bound to be instances in which one or more people in your crew are failing to perform according to the standards and expectations of the company. The question is how do you intend to handle situations like these? You could, of course, enact punitive measures against the employee—dock his or her pay, suspend them—and while these strategies may indeed get their attention, they actually do very little in the way of improving performance, which means you can almost always expect the actions—or lack of action—in certain areas of your business will be repeated. What you need is a system with which you can identify and communicate the problem to the employee, and create a plan that outlines how the two of you can work together to improve his or her performance. This is where an employee performance improvement plan can come in very handy.
A performance improvement plan template helps take the guesswork out of creating this document and it is a very useful tool for businesses of all sizes and across many industries. To illustrate why this is true, in the following article we will discuss the function and importance of a performance improvement plan for employees, followed by some helpful tips regarding the items you should look for when searching the Internet for a free performance improvement plan template.
Performance improvement Plan Template: What Is a Performance Improvement Plan and Why Is It Important?
Regardless of the type of business you operate or manage, whether your company is a retail operation, a business that relies on outside sales or a professional service-related business, there will always, at one time or another, be employees who will underperform. This does not mean your business-management skills are at fault, nor does it necessarily mean you made a poor choice when hiring. It simply means that the employee is failing to meet or measure up to the company standards and that he or she needs to be coached a little in order to improve. This is not, however, a problem you should ignore or sweep under the rug. Failing to act swiftly in these situations can ultimately cause your business to suffer and fall short of its goals.
When an employee is underperforming there are a couple of ways to deal with the situation. You could, of course, let the employee go, but if he or she has been with the company for awhile this is probably not an appropriate option. In fact, it can be very difficult and may leave you vulnerable to litigation. A more appropriate way to handle this circumstance is to create a performance improvement plan for the employee.
In short, a performance improvement plan is a document that businesses use to help an employee improve in one or more areas of the business. It points out to the employee the areas that he or she is deficient according to the company standards, and creates a series of steps an employee can take to progress or get better. Additionally, it identifies resources the employee can use to improve, and sets forth a measurement rubric that will be used to chart the progress—or lack thereof—at various intervals determined by the manager.
While it’s true that many employees will take offense when presented with these plans, it’s important for you as the owner or manager to explain that he or she is not being singled out, and the plan is intended to benefit him or her, rather than punish. When used correctly it will benefit your business by bettering your employees’ skill-sets—sales, organization, attitude, etc.—which will ultimately lead to added productivity and greater profits.
What Should an Employee Performance Improvement Plan Template Include?
When searching online for a free performance improvement plan template, whether it’s simply a general performance improvement plan example or one that is more specific, such as a sales performance improvement plan, there are several items it should include:
• Employee Details. The performance improvement plan example should include spaces in which you can add the employee’s name, title and identification number.
• Evaluator Name. This portion of the free performance improvement plan template is where you will highlight the name of the manager or team leader responsible for creating the plan.
• Deficiencies. Even if you’re creating a specific sales performance improvement plan it should include a listing of each area where the employee is deficient, as measured by the company standards.
• Goals. In this area you will outline the specific steps the employee must take in order to overcome the above-named deficiencies and improve performance.
• Resources. A quality employee performance improvement plan template should include a list of helpful resources, including company staff members who are available to help with the goals laid out in the plan.
• Measurement. This section is simply an explanation of how and when the employee’s performance will be measured.
The final portion of the performance improvement plan template should list the consequences for failing to improve after undergoing this process, and the signatures of both the employee and evaluator. Some plans will even include certain rewards for employee improvement that was significantly greater than expected.
Useful Articles
• How to Write an Employee Performance Improvement Plan
• How to Write a Hospital Performance Improvement Plan