[MUSIC] Hi there. Following on our previous segment were we talk about how to coach someone who is easily distracted, we're going to move on to talk about employees who might miss deadlines on a regular basis. This is another example of tactical accountability. As in the last several videos, we will apply coaching algebra to determine the best solution for coaching and managing these types of employees, and discuss how to avoid the temptation to over coach these types of employees as well. So let's get started. This is an example of tactical accountability again. So we're going to talk about what traps to avoid, make sure we're not overcoaching. And then how to apply coaching algebra. Typically speaking, why do people miss deadlines? There could be a lot of different things here. There could be they're disorganized. There could be that they're not focused during the day. It could be that they don't care about the deadline. It could be that it doesn't matter if they miss the deadline as far as they're concerned. There could be a lot of reasons why. The thing about a deadline is it's very clean, right? Needs to be done by June 30th. Needs to be done by August 1. A deadline is a deadline. It's not like it's vague. At least it shouldn't be. And so if I have someone who's consistently meeting, or not meeting their deadlines, I have to do my diagnostics, right? But what we have to keep in mind is that meeting deadlines is oftentimes a critical element to a position, it's a KPI, right? It's a key performance indicator for a position. And ultimately, it is what drives the organization forward. And I think it's fair to say that you would agree with me that nothing is more challenging to work with than another partner who doesn't meet their deadlines. Because if they don't meet their deadlines it makes it very hard for you to meet yours. In my experience not meeting deadlines is a dealbreaker. It's kind of a big deal for employees in terms of their performance. So I have to do my due diligence, as it relates to coaching this employee. To really discover, okay, am I dealing with someone who genuinely does not know how to meet a deadline, but is willing to learn? Or am I dealing with someone who has met deadlines in the past, and just all of a sudden we're starting to hit some road blocks, okay? So if I identify that it's a skill set then there are some things I can do to teach them. I can set up some mock deadlines, we can do sort of the prioritization exercises that I've talked about where we really calibrate the work that needs to be done everyday and we hold people accountable to that. I can look at their current assignment and we can together build the benchmarks that that they will meet in order to hit the deadlines, we sort of back into it. Regardless of what those are in terms of helping them think through and develop their skill, we have to hold them accountable and ourselves accountable to the follow through of those commitments, and this is key. When we have someone who misses deadlines and then we don't follow up to see if they're meeting their deadlines, we're sort of allowing the problem to continue. So, as a manager, I really, really want to invite you to make sure that you have some very clear tactical accountability here. I want to see this by the state, here's what will happen if it doesn't get done. So yes I'll help you think about it and we'll come up with a better plan. You might need to develop your muscle on looking at your benchmarks and calibrating all your projects, so that you don't miss your deadlines and I will help you with that. But I want to make sure that we're clear that not hitting a deadline is not acceptable. And here's what will happen if that continues to be an issue. You've gotta be really clear here as a manager that that is one of those directives, one of those lines that you have to hold. And that means you have to do the follow up and make sure the work is done, especially if we're trying to ramp someone up on their skill set here. Which can feel a little tedious as a manager, but the truth is is that deadlines are clean. If I'm not hitting deadlines consistently, I've gotta coach someone to know that they have the skill and put some things in place. If they just have thinking that's interfering, they need to recognize it that the way they're thinking about this project, the way they're thinking about this work, is interfering with their ability to achieve the deadline. And that achieving the deadline is not negotiable, that it must be done. So we've gotta figure out how to get it done. And I'll partner with you, but I want to make sure we're clear that the deadline will be hit, right? So that's the pitfall to be careful not to over-coach, right? We need to set the expectations and really help people to get there and then we have to hold them to the specific deadline. A few key elements to remember. Deadlines are clear. We either hit them or we don't. We need to hold people accountable to having deadlines. We may need to figure out through use of coaching algebra if this is a skill set or a mindset issue, why someone missing a deadline. Follow-up with folks is essential. And then we always have to make sure we set expectations that not hitting a deadline is not okay, right. That we must hit the deadlines that are outlined for us or the ones that we commit to and then we have to hold people accountable to those.
