by Mr. Tiny Brain

Created on: January 17, 2009   Last Updated: November 05, 2010

I like to think that there are three basic reasons why employees are not productive. I call these reasons: Can't, Don't, and Won't.

If an employee can't do the work its because he or she doesn't have the authority, tools, knowledge, skills, or some other element necessary to success. In this situation the manager needs to act as a facilitator. The manager can get most of the things the employee needs. The manager can also evaluate whether the employee will ever have the skill necessary to perform the function regardless of the training and patience provided. If the person simply doesn't have the capacity to perform the work, they will need to be removed from the team.

'This is of course assuming that everyone on the team is doing the same kind of work. If there are other assignments within the team or the company it then becomes the managers discretion as to whether duties are reassigned or not. Frequently companies have significant investments in their employees in the form of training or experience. While it may be popular to simply dispose of your problem employees; its not necessarily the best option.

The people who don't perform a task are the ones who have not been directed to do so. You may be a print operator but its simply not your job to proof read all the reports you print. If a manager really wants you to start performing an action; usually all they have to do is ask. The problem arises when a manager assumes that employees will perform a function. The "don't" condition usually surfaces when managers use hindsight as their primary tool. These are the people who tend to tell you one day that you must follow every procedure explicitly and then when that causes a problem they say "You should have used your common sense".

Lastly there is the "won't" category. Here are the situations where the employee makes a conscious choice not to perform a task. The worker may be lazy or may have an ethical objection to the work directive. The manager needs to determine if there is in fact a valid reason for the employee to refuse. There are actually a few good reasons for an employee to refuse to do a job. The best reason would be that the task is unsafe at this time. Other reasons that would be justified would be if the task were illegal or unethical such as copying copyrighted materials for redistribution. Basically though the "won't" group is that one that tends to see the most disciplinary action.

In a team environment, the members of the team need to work together.

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