Performance gaps happen for a variety of reasons and identifying them during your consulting sessions can minimize negative impacts on your client’s business. Gaps from poor company performance can lead to decreased quality, low morale, and attrition, among other issues. They can impact the customer experience and result in a loss of revenue and profits.
The sooner you help your client identify and address performance gaps, the better. But helping your client understand why their company is underperforming is not always straightforward. First, there could be biases and denial. These can lead to favoritism and excuses that affect trust and morale.
To identify underlying issues that could be causing performance gaps, it is important that you and your client address all areas in a diplomatic, transparent, and open-minded way when reviewing potential causes of performance gaps.
Common causes of performance gaps
Unrealistic performance goals
Performance goals enable leaders and employees to plan and organize their work in accordance with achieving predetermined results or outcomes. Unrealistic performance goals can be frustrating to everyone, demotivating the team, and directly impacting performance gap management. Having the right goals can empower your client’s people and drive results. The goals should be reasonable and attainable.
Misalignment of individual goals and company goals
Goal setting can be challenging, and your client’s team might be laser focused on their own performance goals. But making sure that their performance is aligned with the company’s performance is essential for building a strong brand. This involves guiding all the employees in the same general direction according to the company’s vision, mission, and purpose.
Lack of clarity
If your client’s leaders and employees are not clear of their performance goals, then it will be difficult for them to achieve the goals. Part of your employee performance strategy should focus on thoroughly communicating performance goals along with how they are supposed to meet benchmarks. Leaders should also provide clear support and guidance. In addition, it is essential that everyone has the tools and resources they need to achieve the goals and meet benchmarks.
General lack of motivation and disengagement
If your client’s employees are disengaged and lack motivation, they are less likely to care about meeting performance objectives. As an example, sometimes employees are missing skills, tools, and equipment to do their job effectively and efficiently. If your client has plans to purchase equipment, make upgrades, or provide training, this is all something that should be clearly communicated and adjusted for in benchmarks to keep the employees engaged and motivated.
Skill and talent gaps
Your client’s employees must have the right skill sets and abilities to perform their duties, otherwise it will be difficult for them to meet benchmarks. The gaps can lead to inefficiencies, errors, missed career growth, and affect their ability to work within teams. They can also jeopardize projects, deter innovation, and hinder business growth. Reviewing individual and team performance, talking to managers, and getting employee feedback are some of the ways to help identify skill and talent gaps.
Not assessing company performance
Performance gap analysis is a strategic planning tool used by businesses to assess the difference between current performance and desired outcomes. When not done regularly, you and your client could lose sight of the situation.
Assessing company performance on a regular basis with a performance gap analysis forces you and your client to think about the current situation in comparison to the goals. It is used to identify areas of improvement and enhance overall efficiency and effectiveness. A strategic action plan can then be developed to address performance gaps.
Not monitoring progress
When you assist your client with reaching their goals, the more often you and your client monitor their progress, the more likely they are to succeed. When goals are not reached, your client’s company might have a performance problem. Tracking progress is crucial because it keeps the focus on the overall company goals, increases accountability, and clarifies priorities. It can also help identify performance gaps in specific areas which are being monitored.
Today, there are a plethora of AI-driven tools to help with setting goals and monitoring progress. Profit Enhancer Analysis (PEA) is an AI-driven tool that helps consultants set performance goals for companies and track these goals easily. By using PEA, you can help your client monitor progress toward their objectives and make informed decisions based on that data.
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