New hires are exciting… and yes, even the great ones can be a little exhausting at first.
But what if they are not great? I was talking with a client recently who was starting to have doubts about their newest hire. The skills were there. The fit seemed right. And yet, only a few weeks or months in, something just was not clicking.
Before you jump to conclusions or start mentally re-posting the job description, you need to figure out why their performance is not matching your expectations.
From my work with leaders, I have seen that underperformance almost always comes down to one or more of these six gaps:
1️⃣ Clarity gap: Do they know what is expected, priorities, success measures, and what “good” looks like?
2️⃣ Ramp-up gap: Are they still learning? Your expectations for speed may not match reality.
3️⃣ Workload gap: Is there simply too much work? Or is the complexity more than someone at their stage, or any one person, can realistically handle?
4️⃣ Support gap: Do they have the tools, resources, and access to the right people to succeed?
5️⃣ Feedback gap: Have they received clear, timely, specific feedback and a real chance to act on it?
6️⃣Fit gap: Are their skills, working style, or values aligned with the role, the manager, and the team?
Once you know which gaps you are dealing with, you can take targeted action:
- With your direct report: Share what you are seeing, and ensure you are truly hearing what is going on from their perspective. It might take one conversation to plant the seed and another to agree on specific, short-term actions to close the gap.
- With your manager: Keep them informed. Let them know what you have tried, what is improving, and where you need their support. Use them as a resource for suggestions, and make sure you understand the time and process required if it turns out someone is not going to work out.
Not every new hire will work out, but far too often leaders default to frustration instead of diagnosis. Closing even one of these gaps could be the difference between losing a hire and unlocking their potential.
If you have a team member in this spot right now, start here: Identify the gap. Address it directly. Watch what changes, you might be surprised how quickly things turn around.
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