The Difference Between a Performance Problem and a Management Problem

HR perspective for organisations across Sheffield and South Yorkshire

Not every performance issue is a performance issue.

That sounds like a contradiction. It isn't. Some of the most intractable situations in the workplace — the ones that end up in formal processes, occasionally in tribunals — started with a problem that had nothing to do with the employee's capability or attitude. They started with unclear expectations, inadequate support, a role that changed without anyone saying so, or a manager who assumed rather than communicated.

Before any performance conversation, it's worth asking an honest question. Is this a performance problem, or is it a management problem wearing a performance problem's clothes?

What a management problem looks like

The role wasn't properly defined when the person was hired. The objectives set at the start of the year no longer reflect what the business actually needs. The person has never received meaningful feedback — not the annual appraisal kind, but the ongoing, specific, two-way kind that actually helps someone develop.

The manager is conflict-avoidant, so poor performance has been accommodated rather than addressed. Or the manager has changed, and the new one has different expectations that haven't been clearly communicated.

None of that is the employee's fault. But they're the ones who end up in the formal process.

Why it matters

Partly because it's the right thing to do. Putting someone through a performance management process for a problem the organisation created is, at best, unfair. At worst it's an employment tribunal waiting to happen.

But it also matters practically. If the underlying issue is a management or organisational one, the formal process won't fix it. You'll go through the whole thing — the meetings, the improvement plan, the reviews — and either the person leaves, or they stay and the same dynamic reasserts itself with the next person in the role.

The problem travels.

The honest audit

Before moving to any formal process, the most useful thing is usually a clear-eyed look at a handful of questions.

Has the person been told specifically what good looks like in this role? Have they received feedback that was honest, timely, and actionable — not just in an annual review but regularly? Has anything changed in the role, the team, or the organisation that might explain the gap? Have they had the support, resource, and management they needed to succeed?

If the answer to any of those is no, that's where the work starts. Not with a formal letter.

What this looks like in practice

Across South Yorkshire and Sheffield, the organisations that handle performance well tend to have one thing in common. Someone senior enough to ask these questions — and experienced enough to know which answer they're actually getting — involved early enough to make a difference.

Not to run the process. To help the business understand what it's actually dealing with before the process starts.

That's a different kind of HR support to what most people picture. But it's usually the more valuable one.

Working through a performance situation in Sheffield or South Yorkshire and not sure whether it's the employee or the environment? King HR Advisory helps growing organisations get clarity before they commit to a course of action.