Every person you hire has an intended role to fill. In some fashion, you can determine their performance and compare it to the benchmark you’ve set for them. The bar might be set quite low or you may expect a lot from your employees, but that’s not the issue at hand.

Are your employees living up to their potential? That’s vastly different than the standards you’ve set for them in their current position. The role they fill right now might be all they’re able to do (or maybe beyond their capacity). They might also be capable of much more under your guidance, and potentially beyond your guidance.

There are four categories of employees:

• Those whose skills make them a perfect fit for their current career. These staff members are mostly satisfied with their job, work well under your leadership and with the rest of your team, and have no desire to look beyond their role.
• Those who are outside of their comfort zone. The position they fill is stretching the limits of their abilities, or might be more than they can handle. The daily flustered look on their face gives them away.
• Those who have no place in your store. These people are in-fighters, disruptors, or those who don’t have the skill necessary to fill their position – or any other – at your dealership. You’d be happy to help them find a new job elsewhere.
• Those who are exceedingly proficient or skilled at their job. It’s the people you’d hate to lose in any situation, staff members who make others around them better, and those with the capacity to do much more than they currently do. They seem restless at times, losing interest, and lack motivation at points.

The first type is great to have around. Day in and day out, they get their workload done and take pride in their work. The second type might need extra coaching, training, or to be re-assigned to a different role. The third type needs to move on, and you can assist them in finding a new career by releasing them from their obligations at your store.

The fourth type is a problem, but a good problem. It’s the type of employee that should take up the most time of anyone, and here’s why:

They’re Underachieving

Someone who has skills to do more than their current role has a tendency to get complacent. It’s no longer a challenge to go to work – it’s just routine. Their attention wanders and they lose focus on the details in their job. That’s probably the most frustrating bit for you as their manager because you see no limit to their capabilities. A marked drop in CSI scores, calls from customers, and complaints from other staff mar one month, followed by a stellar month afterward.

They know they can perform their role, but it’s no longer a challenge. What do you do? Fire them for poor performance? That seems like a waste.

Prepare Underachievers for the Next Career Step

If someone is getting complacent at their job, it’s time to address it. While bad behavior might be an issue, it stems from lack of stimulation in many cases. They need more from their job and, while they might be great at the position, something else might suit that person better.

Discover Where They Want to Be

You’ll need to determine what your employee wants from their future. Do they want your job, or the one above you eventually? Is there a different department they’d like to enter? Discover your employee’s goals – you can’t help direct their steps if you don’t know where they want to end up.

Keep in mind, this is to better the employee in the long run. Don’t make your discovery time part of a disciplinary process as it may become a negative association. You don’t want coaching to be anything but positive.

Set Out a Training Path

As a leader, your job is to bring your team forward in their careers. Assist these underachievers in planning out their next steps. Is additional training required, or certification necessary? Would time shadowing their desired position be of use?

Help your team member schedule the necessary training steps to achieve their goals. If outside training is required, it’s a great idea to subsidize the cost upon a successful passing grade.   

Encourage Seminars and Additional Training

If your employee truly wants to move up in the ranks, encourage attendance at the seminars and dealer-focused training for that position. It gives a taste of what can be expected down the road. It might also help your employee determine if the job is as glamorous as they thought or if it’s not really a good fit.

If you let great employees continue to underachieve, you’ll have one of two things – a great employee moving onto another opportunity or a wild card in your department. Neither option is great.