Setting Boundaries & Clarifying Expectations (Sabrina Starling on Small Business)

(Shutterstock)

Managing a team comes with challenges, especially when expectations are unclear or long-term employees resist change. Boundaries are essential to building a great team.

One challenging situation is managing long-term employees who have been with the business since its early years. As the company grows, the leadership mindset evolves, but some employees may resist change. This can create tension, especially if they are not meeting performance standards.

To avoid ongoing performance issues, business owners must ensure that every role in their company has well-defined expectations. Ask yourself this: “If the person in this role could only accomplish one thing each day, or each week, what is the most important result they need to achieve?”

This result should be specific and measurable. In addition, daily and weekly success actions should be clearly outlined. Documentation is crucial. Team members should document their efforts to ensure transparency and accountability.

If expectations have never been explicitly defined, owners should initiate a “let’s sort this out” conversation. This allows for reassessing roles and lets employees work from their strengths.

Team members must understand how their roles impact success. Business owners often hesitate to discuss finances, but educating employees on how their performance affects job security, pay and growth fosters accountability.

Addressing Underperformance

A structured performance improvement process is necessary when employees fail to meet expectations despite clear guidance. I recommend these steps:

1. Hold one-on-one meetings. Weekly check-ins provide an opportunity to discuss challenges and ensure employees work toward their key results. Employees should come prepared with progress updates.
2. Implement a performance review. A formal review is needed if performance does not improve. Business owners and employees should both assess performance and identify discrepancies.
3. Create a performance improvement plan. Employees must understand specific actions they need to take to improve within a set timeframe (four to six weeks).
4. Make a final decision. If the employee fails to meet expectations, it’s time to part ways.

Many business owners hesitate to fire underperforming employees, especially if they are long-term team members or friends. However, keeping an ineffective employee on the payroll drains profitability and creates tension in the workplace.

Handling Team Member Criticism

While constructive feedback is valuable, toxic negativity undermines leadership. If employees repeatedly criticize decisions, business owners should respond with:

“I’m learning and growing, just like you. This is our direction. Are you on board?”

Encouraging solution-oriented feedback while shutting down toxic criticism helps maintain a positive work environment.

Strong leadership requires clear expectations, firm boundaries and strategic performance management. Addressing underperformance early and maintaining professional communication are crucial.

Sabrina Starling, Ph.D., PCC, BCC, is the bestselling author of “How to Hire the Best” and “The 4 Week Vacation.” Founder of tapthepotential.com and host of the “Profit by Design” podcast, she and her team coach entrepreneurs to take their lives back from their businesses. They are on a mission to send 10,000 entrepreneurs on a four-week vacation in 10 years.