Research has proven that any excuse a person offers for not doing or being better is found in the skills they lack and their lack of willingness to do what needs to be done. A “Low Will” person must either change their attitude, desire, and commitment or be dismissed. Use the progressive discipline process to deal fairly and decisively with employees who fail to meet minimum performance standards.
You can have excuses or results, but you can’t have both. A person with “High Will” is a person you want to help develop.
Overview
A skill is the ability to do something well. It is a reflection of competency in performing specific tasks and personal effectiveness in fulfilling their responsibilities and willingness to be accountable for the results of their actions. Skill is the combination of aptitude, natural talent, training, and experience.
Will is how motivated a person is to perform their role well, complete assigned tasks, and own their behavior. The will to do what is required is more important than skill. It represents an individual’s willingness, attitude, confidence, desire, and commitment to do what they have been hired to do. Someone with the will can be taught the skill, but without the will to use the skill, nothing will be done well.
Those who have the capability and skills to do a task, but are unwilling to do it when it needs to be done have a “will” issue. Skill issues exist when one is willing to do a task, but does not have the capability and skill to do it as required. When a person is underperforming, one of the following four Skill vs. Will combinations exist:
- High Skill, High Will
- High Skill, Low Will
- Low Skill, High Will
- Low Skill, Low Will
When dealing with a low-performing employee, first determine if they have the SKILL to successfully complete the specific tasks they have been hired to perform. If they don’t, you must first solve the skill problem, provide better instruction of what’s required, improve understanding of performance standards, and train as needed.
If they have the skill but don’t appear to have the desire to do what’s required when it needs to be done, then you have a WILL problem. An individual with a skill but not a will issue can be helped through coaching and training in the specific area of need. This is not the same for those without the will to do what’s required. You know you have a will problem when the employee is …
- Not engaged in their work as evidenced by them always being the last to arrive and first to leave.
- Unable to consistently meet due dates and quality standards.
- Quick with the excuses on why something didn’t happen when it was supposed to.
- Must be asked to take on tasks or new responsibilities.
- Miserable person to be around with no one wanting to work with, talk to, or approach them.
- No interest in the results of their actions or how they contribute to business success.
- High track record of frequent job changes.
The goal in managing a person with High Skill and High Will is to help them broaden their skill base and to find more opportunities to contribute to business success.
Motivation is the goal when working with employees with High Skill and Low Will by first identifying the cause for their low motivation and then determining what will motivate them to do what they are highly skilled and capable of doing. The right motivation will move them to High Skill and High Will. If they continue to exhibit Low Will, then it’s time to take them through your progressive discipline process because Low Will employees are always a drain on management time, business resources, profits, and cash reserves.
Low Skill and High Will employees need attention. They need help building their skills, aptitude, and confidence to do what they need to do. Someone with the will can be taught the skill, moving them to High Skill and High Will. Should you fail to develop the required skills, they are likely to drop to Low Skill and Low Will, which is never good for the employee or the employer.
Little to nothing is ever done well or on time involving a Low Skill and Low Will employee. If this is a new employee, management must confirm a will problem and a hiring mistake has been made. A person with “low will” will never develop the requisite skills, and this person should be terminated during the probation period. If the employee is past the point of new hire termination, then progressive discipline is required because there is nothing more draining on management time and employee morale than a person with Low Skill and Low Will.
Employees who complain and consistently struggle to complete their work as expected are like a bad apple in a bushel of apples. Eventually, if uncorrected, they will contaminate other employees, causing the problems they create to spread. Allowing this to go unchecked always leads to decreases in sales and cost increases. Every time expenses increase and sales decrease, you are in for immediate cash flow and profitability problems. Use Progressive Discipline to deal fairly and decisively with problem employees.
For those employees with the will and not the skill it’s about development. It’s about helping your employees become the contributors your business needs to generate sales at ever-improving levels of profitability and customer satisfaction.