Preparing with HR

First and foremost, if you got hold of HR to work with you during the “corrections” step of the performance cycle, then it’s highly likely that they’re already keeping their own pulse on the situation, and if you reach out to them with the news that the employee hasn’t improved their performance, the HR team will be ready to take the next step.

And, in fact, in many companies, they’ll tell you what you need to do from here: What documentation you need to provide, what meetings you need to be in, even down to the words you need to say. In many cases, once you’ve said the requisite words, the HR folks move in and take over, essentially ushering you out the door while they take care of the rest.

It may feel a little unempowering to be “scripted” so heavily, but this is actually for both your and the company’s benefit. Given all the litigation (at least in the US) around wrongful termination suits, it’s to your advantage to let people who (literally) study this subject take over and handle the heavy lifting around this.

Having said all that, and with the caveat that you should always follow the script that HR lays down for you, there’s a few things to keep in mind as you progress forward.