Ask these questions before deciding to let someone go.

“But he’s such a nice guy”, says the supervisor complaining about her under-delivering team member. We’ve all heard it. Many of us have said it. If you’re in a role where you manage people, you’ve probably been a part of this conversation more than once.

How do you know when it’s time to cut your losses and consider letting someone go? When is it better to have someone than no one? A few questions to ask yourself before taking action:

• Have you made expectations clear? Do they understand what their job is and what success looks like?

• Does this employee want to remain in this role?

• Have you provided support and direction to help this employee do their job and achieve their goals?

• Is this employee coachable?

• If so, can you invest the time or money in coaching them to the necessary level?

• Is there another role in the organization where they might be a better fit?

• Are others having to do more work than they would if a higher performer was in the position in question?

• Are others covering up for mistakes by this person?

• Are you judging this employee fairly? Are your evaluation standards consistent across employees?

Make sure you’re doing all you can to set this employee up for success first. If you are still not seeing the results you need, think about the impact a termination will have on your organization and consult your HR department and/or an employment attorney. Often most of the team is aware of the problem, and has been wondering why you haven’t taken action. By keeping a sub-par employee (without addressing the issues) you are lowering the standards for the whole organization, putting unfair strain on others and undermining yourself as a leader.