A key role is underperforming

When someone in a key role is not keeping up, do not start with how to replace them. Start with what the role has become over the last year. Much of what looks like falling behind is the role outgrowing the person, not the person getting worse.

The order of judgement is: how much the demands of the role have changed, whether the person has had clear feedback and enough support, and whether anything changed after that feedback and support. Rule these out in order before you reach replacement.

Delay is the most expensive option. A key role that is not working means the whole team is covering for it, and everyone can see you avoiding the issue. Set a clear deadline and decide within it.

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1. Never saying it

   Afraid of hurting the relationship, you cover for them yourself or through others. They do not know they are behind, while the team knows you are avoiding it. When you finally act, they feel abandoned without warning.

2. Treating a role problem as a person problem

   The role went from managing three people to managing thirty. The demands are different. You blame the person without ever asking what the role now needs.

3. Feedback that is too soft

   Every review says not bad, keep pushing. What they hear is fine. When you decide to replace them, they produce a year of positive reviews.

4. Deciding to replace before there is a successor

   You decide to move someone out with no handover or replacement in place. A key role goes from underperforming to vacant, and the loss is larger.

1. How much the role has changed

   Compare the scale, complexity, and external demands of the role a year ago and now. If the change is large, the first question is what kind of person the role needs, not where this person falls short.

2. Whether the feedback was explicit

   Does the person know clearly where the gap is, what the deadline is, and what happens if it is not met? If those three things have never been said plainly, the problem starts with you.

3. Whether anything is changing

   In the six to eight weeks after explicit feedback and support, has their behaviour changed? Change that is slow can be given more time. No change at all means ability or willingness has reached its limit.

1. The role outgrew the person

   Split the role. Keep the part they are good at, and staff the part that grew with someone else, ideally someone they recommend. Many early employees find their value again in a narrower, deeper role. Moving someone costs far less than replacing them.

2. Requirements were unclear and support was thin

   Have the explicit conversation you skipped: where the gap is, how long they have, what support you will provide, and what happens if it is not closed. Write it down and review against that record in six to eight weeks. This is fairness to them and to yourself.

3. Feedback and support were given and nothing changed

   Decide, and stop extending. Line up a successor or transition plan first, then discuss a move or a departure. Use the written record in the conversation, do not relitigate the past, and give full dignity and severance.

1. Tell the strategist what changed in the role over the past year, what feedback you have given, whether anything changed, and who on the team is covering for them now.

2. The strategist first rules out the three possibilities, role, support, ability, and tells you which step you are at, rather than jumping to replacement.

3. You leave with an action card: the conversation or the role split to do this week, plus a deadline signal that says a decision is now due.

1. A long-time employee cannot keep up with the company's growth but has contributed a lot. What do I do?

   Contribution is a fact about the past. The role needs ability in the present. First see whether they can move to a role they can do well, so contribution and ability match again. If no such role exists, talk honestly and give full severance and dignity.

2. How long should I give someone to improve?

   Six to eight weeks after explicit feedback is enough to see direction. That period needs specific goals and checkpoints, not a vague wait and see. Slow change can earn one extension. No change means it is time to decide.

3. How do I say it without hurting them?

   Talk about facts and gaps, not character and attitude. Put the requirements of the role and their current performance side by side and let the gap speak. What hurts is usually not the content but how long you waited to say it.

4. If I replace them, will the team feel insecure?

   It depends on the process. If the team saw feedback and support come first and a decision last, done with dignity, they conclude the rules are clear. If the replacement is sudden, they conclude anyone could be next.

This page covers management judgement, not employment law. Reassignment, termination, and severance must follow local law; consult professionals. Do not use Sun Tzu's language to justify coercion or mistreatment of staff.