How the hell do you answer this question? :)

azezil

I've gotten this question a few times but never got any feedback as to weather I answer it correctly or not.

It usually goes something like "Someone on your team is under performing, what do you do?"

Usually I'd say I'd approach the person, see if they're in difficulty and see if I can help out, at this point they usually ask, "and what if they continue to under perform?" to which I reply if the problem persists I'd report the issue to my TL / manager.

Good / bad answer??

r3nu4l

I think the best answer is pretty similar to your own with a slight difference. I usually say that I would inform my manager that there was a problem but that I was going to speak to the person in question. It's important to show that you are considerate of the employee so you should say that you would ask the person in quesiton if there was a reason for the underperformance or if there was anything you could do to help/improve their preformance. I would then feedback the response to my own manager.

If this was unsuccessful I would go directly to my manager and inform them. I would then recommend that the person in question, myself and my own manager arrange a more formal meeting along the same lines.

Following this, if this is still unsuccessful then you should say that yourself and your manager might be better off speaking with HR to see if it would be useful t introduce the company performance improvement plan. This shows that you are trying to help but following company procedures.

nesf

Depends on the company and the potential working environment imho. Some places prefer everything like this to go through the manager first (ie it's not your place to be managing the team), others prefer the manager being the last resort (team members should help each other) and others somewhere between the two extremes.

*shrugs*

Wishbone Ash

Some employers prefer a "non authoritarian" approach and consider it appropriate to see if there is a problem in the employee's private life which is affecting their performance and may need addressing.

Eoin

azezil wrote:

I've gotten this question a few times but never got any feedback as to weather I answer it correctly or not.

It usually goes something like "Someone on your team is under performing, what do you do?"

Usually I'd say I'd approach the person, see if they're in difficulty and see if I can help out, at this point they usually ask, "and what if they continue to under perform?" to which I reply if the problem persists I'd report the issue to my TL / manager.

Good / bad answer??

Maybe this is obvious to everyone else, but when your say "someone on your team"; is this where you are in a team leader type role, or someone who is your equivalent?

If it's a team leader role, then r3nu4l's advice is good, but if you're the person's equivalent then it would be assuming too much authority.

r3nu4l

eoin_s wrote:

Maybe this is obvious to everyone else, but when your say "someone on your team"; is this where you are in a team leader type role, or someone who is your equivalent?

Good point. I assumed this was for a team leader role.

With someone on an equivalent level then it's safer to just say that you would notify your manager that you felt that the person might be struggling and would offer to help with some of the work or mentor for a while. It might seem like ratting someone out but at the end of the day your responsibilty is to the company and th other members of your team and if the peron needs help and isn't askng for it then someone should offer some help.

takenow

I've been asked that too and indeed I actually dealt with similar situations in real life and there are many answers.
It's quite possible there is a personal issue with the person in which case you'll need to explain to him and convince him that you're on his side and all information he gives you is confidential and your aim is to help and advise him.
It may be the case that he doesn't like his role or feels unappreciated so you'll have to motivate him or place him somewhere else/change his duties.
Examine his history within the company and establish where it all began to change. Investigate what happened around this time and include him in this process.
Remind him that this is a team and as a team member he is important to his team mates and their work.
You could also suggest that retraining him may needed.
It's possible he just doesn't like his job.
He could be a victim of bullying.
Always be confident when dealing with him so he'll confide in you. Respect him but be clear to him that his performance must improve or action will unfortunately have to be taken. Dismissal is always an option too.
Whatever the correct answer is you can be sure of one thing- the interviewers don't have all the answers either!!