Why Won't Employees Do What They Are Supposed To Do?

In the classic book, Coaching for Improved Work Performance, author F.F. Fournies presents a list of reasons that people do not perform well in the workplace . These are the “crickets in their shoes” that I mentioned in my earlier post.  In the coming weeks, we will take a look at those reasons and how you should deal with each situation.  Employees may be under-performing because:

·    They don’t know what they are supposed to do.
·    They don’t know how to do it.
·    They don’t understand the importance of doing it.
·    They think they are doing it.
·    There are obstacles beyond their control.
·    They think it will not work.
·    They think their way is better.
·    They think something else is more important.
·    There is no positive consequence to them for doing it.
·    There is a negative consequence to them for doing it.
·    There is a positive consequence to them for not doing it.
·    There is no negative consequence to them for not doing it.
·    They do not have the capacity to do it.
·    They have personal problems.
·    They are fearful of doing it.
·    It can’t be done.

It is only through correctly identifying performance problems and applying appropriate remedies that we can expect to see positive returns on the time we invest in coaching and mentoring.