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Rising Star
I wouldn't mention the kids in your feedback, but you do need to provide feedback. Maybe he's used to working on projects where he is able to slack, so be clear with him about the standard of work you are expecting and about deadlines.
COVID makes everything harder for sure, but he still needs to get the work done.
Don't have experience with sub contractors in the same sense, but as a single parent I appreciate i) honest direct feedback even if that feedback includes criticism during a rough personal time, ii) flexibility with timing of deliverables and response time, and iii) short-term patience, including clear expectations of minimal requirements during weeks that are especially busy with my kids.
Be honest, but be kind. And if a situation is ambiguous, give the guy the benefit of the doubt. It's likely he knows his current state is unsustainable, and he may be in the middle of remedying things.
This response / guidance echos what I was going to say. Be kind yet set clear expectations. I’ve hired and worked with many subcontractors and this approach is what I’ve found works. Contractors are so hit or miss sadly, and I hope this situation works out. Regarding the kids situation, I would casually talk about challenges you or someone else has with taking care of kids at home and how they are dealing with it (hiring a babysitter etc.) Covid makes things harder, but at some point if people don’t want to hire help and aren’t able to focus on work because of childcare, then that is their decision that will drive some consequences.
Explore giving slack in terms of time of day (let him work after kids have gone to bed), but not quality of work or quantity produced in a reasonable # of hours.
Associate 1, can’t tell if you have kids or not, but all those things can absolutely have to do with having kids. Try having 4 kids distract you every minute you’re at work or getting no sleep during the week. My output would go down the shitter.
OP – definitely unacceptable. You sound very empathetic but this crosses the line.
Do not mention anything about kids or family or the personal situation , that is a lawsuit waiting to happen, and I know a Kpmg manager who lost their job for saying/doing exactly what you are saying here. The contractor sued kpmg and reported said manager to HR. The call to sack the manager was straightforward really.
The best thing to do is to focus only on quality of work, communication etc in any formal or informal feedback. Try to counsel the person into better performance. Do not involve yourself in any decision to let him go, or write anything over email even to superiors about his 'family' situation because everything documented gets preserved if an HR inquiry happens.
I'm curious in other countries (that are less lawsuit trigger happy) how they are addressing this? Countries that are more direct in their culture. I've heard German and Dutch are very direct...
You must work at Deloitte.
Haha sadly not, i don’t have what it takes to get into Deloitte, which as everyone knows is more selective than Harvard.
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What are the specifics of not meeting standards? You need to put on your leadership pants and get creative. Have you coached this person on where to improve and give examples? Yes you're right, kids make things hard, but I agree quality should always be delivered too. I'm sure this person wants to become a full time employee someday and feed his kids, so I'm sure there is motivation. A little empathy and quality coaching can inspire people to do better. Also...it's a pandemic so times are extra demanding to parents. I say cut slack for now, provide quality feedback, and understand that they can do better if you show compassion.
Great feedback, all. My question was really whether i should cut him slack bc of the kids, obviously not going to bring that up as a consideration with him. I actually met with him today already to provide specific feedback, examples, and provided suggestions for remediation. I also set up weekly coaching sessions to track his progress. Unfortunately he has been with the program for 5 months and I’m the 4th manager (and his current lead) that has made the same observations—the other guys just wanted to kick the can down the road and deferred feedback to me. For now we’ll see what he does with the feedback and go from there.
See my response to McK1
Never carry dead weight.
Rising Star
D2, you win 👏👏👏👏
I think based on your comments, you have been very considerate in your approach. I'd say, give specific feedback and timeline for improvement. It's possible he has personal issues but it's also possible he is just not very good at the job. You're doing the right thing by giving expectations and providing feedback on improvement.
Op right now
Chief
He’s a subcontractor- roll him off and get a replacement. End of story.
That is great you had a conversation with him and shared feedback. As others mentioned be kind about and see if you see improvements over the next 2-4 weeks. If you don’t then you need to move fwd
I would provide him with feedback and examples of where his work does not meet expectations, and finish the conversation asking him something along the lines of “what do you need to succeed?”. It will hopefully give him the opening to communicate the flexibility and predictability he needs to get things done as a working parent.
Listen to episode 766 of the HBR Idea Cast podcast if you need some strategies to have this conversation.
Please be nice and give everyone enough room to perform. U are going to be on the other side of the table sooner or later. Most the work we do at b4 and in consulting is NOT going to change the world... but u have an option of impacting someone’s life positively or negatively. Choice is yours!! I was an MD at competing B4 and now work for FAANG.
Rising Star
Thanks C1 👏
I have multiple people on my teams with kids in the background. I also have two toddlers, but they’re in pre-k for a few hours a day. My position also allows me to push meetings when I need them. People are doing what they can with the schedules allotted.
If he isn’t missing deliverables and deadlines, then I don’t see the issue.
That’s fair. At a minimum it would need to be addressed. Give him a chance to course-correct. I hear the “fire him and move on” attitudes above, but that doesn’t make for effective managers in the long term. You want a team you can trust who want to work for you also. Maybe he’s oblivious and needs to hear how he’s failing - could provide the response you want. If not, bag him and tag him.