Predictive Success Blog

Why Talented Employees Underperform

As a manager or executive of an organization, it is normal to expect a lot from your employees. When some employees don’t meet such expectations, managers are often quick to blame the employees themselves. In most cases, however, there are various hidden culprits as to why intelligent, driven, talented employees underperform. 

Hiring Managers Using Subjectivity

During the hiring process, interviewers and hiring managers can be highly opinionated. Subjectively going through applicants’ resumes or using their “gut instinct” are some of the many ways hiring managers are subjective during the hiring process. Subjectivity within the hiring process can result in hiring a poor fit: simply because the applicant gets along with the hiring manager does not mean that the applicant will perform well in the team environment. 

The Predictive Index™ as delivered by Predictive Success Corporation, is the ultimate software tool to eliminate subjectivity during the hiring process using science-based hiring methods. Through PI’s Behavioural Assessment™ and Job Targets, applicants are evaluated objectively to find the best fit for a specific work environment and culture.

Talented Employees in an Unfit Environment

All employees are talented and well-equipped for different tasks. For example, a creative employee would shine in an environment where they are given the freedom to complete the task as they see fit. However, put that same creative employee in a strict environment with rules and dead-set tasks, and they will fail. This highlights the importance of recruiting the right talent for the right environment. Otherwise, the employee’s talent will be wasted, the work environment will get thrown off, and performance will tank. 

The common problem is that even when organizations can correctly evaluate applicants and their work style and personality, they misjudge their work culture. Many organizations see themselves much more inclusive, innovative, and social than they really are. 

PI Design™ and Team Discovery allow organizations to discover how their team works and dig deep into their culture. PI Design provides you with the much-needed prior knowledge to move forward with PI Hire™ and find the right talent for your newly discovered team type. 

Poor Leadership Results in Poor Performance

When talented and notable employees quit, it is often the fault of the manager, not the employees themselves. A leader that does not recognize their employees’ hard work often finds that their employees lose their drive and motivation to go the extra mile. Managers that are too strict and do not allow their employees some freeway to do what they do best will find that employees quickly become bored and find the job dull, giving them no other alternative but to underperform. Such examples show numerous complex micro-behaviors that all managers must know to ensure a healthy and driven work environment. 

PI Inspire™ empowers managers to foster strong relationships and uses varying management strategies to motivate employees based on their behavioral needs. At Predictive Success, PSC Academy offers various training courses, such as Leadership Training and Change Management Training, allowing managers from any organization across various industries to harness the power of their team’s true potential.

About Predictive Success

Predictive Success empowers leaders to optimize workforce performance through proven talent management methodologies, high-performing team-building technology, and collected employee or potential candidate data. To learn more about how you can work with our team, please contact us today.

Sources:

4 Reasons Talented Employees Don’t Reach Their Potential (hbr.org)

6 Reasons Why Smart Employees Underperform, And How That Can Be Fixed (providesupport.com)

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