Supervisor Foundations · Lesson 5.3
ASK WHAT HAPPENED BEFORE DECIDING WHY
Poor performance has a cause.
Sometimes the cause is:
- lack of skill
- unclear instruction
- workload
- missing resources
- system failure
- competing priorities
- personal difficulty
- poor judgment
- negligence
- refusal
The supervisor should not decide the cause before asking.
Poor
“You missed the deadline because you do not care.”
Better
“The report was due yesterday and was not submitted. Walk me through what happened.”
WORKPLACE EXAMPLES
EXAMPLE 1 — LOGISTICS
Delivery reports are late.
The supervisor discovers the mobile reporting system has been unavailable.
EXAMPLE 2 — SCHOOL
An employee misses an assigned parent follow-up.
The supervisor learns that two managers gave conflicting instructions.
EXAMPLE 3 — RETAIL
A worker says stock was not replenished because the storeroom was locked and no authorized key-holder was available.
BETTER RESPONSE
EXAMPLE 4 — OFFICE
An employee repeatedly ignores a procedure despite clear training, working systems and prior coaching.
At that point, the issue may be accountability rather than lack of support.
Remember
Ask first.
Verify.
Then decide.
Workplace action
Use this opening: “Tell me what happened from your perspective.”
Quick Check
Why should a supervisor ask what happened?