Handling and Documenting an Under-Performing Employee

Overview:

This session delivers a structured, legally informed, and immediately actionable guide for managers and HR professionals who are responsible for addressing, managing, and documenting employee underperformance in American workplace environments.

Participants will learn how to identify and define underperformance with precision, how to conduct performance conversations that are direct, professional, and constructive, and how to build a documentation record that is consistent, defensible, and fair.

Every concept is grounded in real management scenarios, designed for immediate application across industries, and built around the principle that handling underperformance well is not just a legal necessity - it is one of the most important acts of leadership a manager can perform.

Why you should Attend:

If you have a team member right now whose performance is not where it needs to be and you have not yet had a direct, documented conversation about it - the risk to your organization is already accumulating. Undocumented performance issues are among the leading causes of wrongful termination claims, grievance escalations, and costly legal disputes in American workplaces. When a situation eventually reaches HR or legal, the first question is always the same: where is the documentation? If the answer is that there is none, the organization's position is severely weakened - regardless of how legitimate the performance concern actually is.

Beyond the legal exposure, every day an underperforming employee remains unaddressed is a day your high performers are watching. They see what is being tolerated. They draw conclusions about the standards this organization holds and about whether their own contributions actually matter. The cost of inaction is never zero. This session shows you exactly what to do instead.

Areas Covered in the Session:

• Defining underperformance with precision: the difference between a performance gap, a conduct issue, and a capability challenge  and why the distinction determines everything that follows
• Why managers delay performance conversations  and the compounding organizational, legal, and cultural costs of waiting
• How to prepare for a performance conversation: the specific information, examples, and documentation a manager must have in place before the discussion begins
• Conducting the performance conversation: a structured, step-by-step approach that is direct, professional, legally sound, and focused on improvement rather than punishment
• Setting clear, measurable, and timebound performance expectations  the standard every improvement plan must meet to be credible and defensible
• Performance Improvement Plans: when to use them, how to structure them, what they must include, and how to manage the process from initiation to resolution
• The documentation discipline: what to record, how to record it, when to record it, and where it must be stored to protect the organization and the employee
• Common documentation mistakes that expose organizations to legal liability  and exactly how to avoid them
• How to manage the performance process when an employee pushes back, escalates, or involves legal counsel
• The manager's role versus HR's role: understanding the boundaries, the handoffs, and the shared responsibilities in a formal performance management process
• Maintaining team morale and productivity during a performance management process  how to lead the broader team without compromising confidentiality or fairness
• Knowing when performance management has run its course: the criteria and process for moving from improvement planning to separation, and how to handle that transition professionally and legally

Who Will Benefit:

• Managers at All Levels 
• Team Leaders and Supervisors 
• HR Directors, Managers, and Business Partners 
• Employee Relations Specialists
• Chief People Officers and CHRO's
• Operations and Department Heads
• Senior Leaders Overseeing Management Teams 
• Legal and Compliance Professionals in HR-Adjacent Roles
• New and First-Time Managers Building Foundational People Management Skills
• Any Professional Responsible for Team Performance Who Wants to Handle Underperformance Fairly, Firmly, and Without Legal Exposure