Q: I have already posted a job advertising our office manager's position. Even though I tried to do this discretely, I know that she can find out about the posting. How do I have a conversation about this if she asks me? (She has mediocre communication skills with her subordinates, is average with accounting and does not display the dedication of coming to work that I would need for a team player.) I also need her to work for me while I am looking for her replacement. How do I interview candidates during her office hours?

A: I appreciate your writing to me regarding this issue but before we get into the details of what is to be done let's step back and see what kind of workplace you may inadvertently be creating by virtue of your actions. If I understand the situation, you are quietly trying to replace the existing employee with a new one while the existing employee, who we will call Betty, is still in the job. By posting a position behind Betty's back, what message do you imagine you are telegraphing to the rest of the office? I can appreciate your intentions may be good, in that you do not want to interrupt the work flow by having a gap in your employee line up, but who's going to feel comfortable or, more importantly, productive working for you?

Put yourself in Betty's shoes—forget her level of performance for the moment. Consider how you might feel if no one directly told you how you were doing, what you need to do to improve, and/or as a result you find out you are being replaced. Would you work for you? I know you'll say you've tried but words like "mediocre and average" don't qualify as reasons to fire someone. If that were the case, at least in some category of performance, everyone working in corporate America should be let go. Granted there are critical skills required to perform well in any position but your description of Betty's performance doesn't warrant dismissal. I suspect the underlying reasons have more to do with differences in style rather than executing the work.

Regardless of whether or not Betty is worthy, you have to change your fundamental approach to the workplace if you are trying to maximize productivity. What you may see as conflict aversion most likely has resulted in a workforce that is more compliant than productive. Since you are not being direct, as in your statement "she does not display the dedication of coming to work I would need for a team player," how would Betty know what to do to improve?

Referring to your first question: how do I have this conversation with her, if and when she asks if her job is being replaced? That's the wrong conversation. The real conversation is that you are not happy with her job performance and give her the reasons why. Don't speak in conclusions, talk about the behaviors you have seen and recorded and then talk about what you need to see for this job to be done well. Keep what you say objective, applying the old "SMART" format of Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Time-bound. If Betty doesn't meet the performance levels you have in mind tell her the repercussions.

I believe that all of us deserve and want the chance to do well. We just need to know what "well" looks like. If you fail someone because you didn't tell them the rules then whose failure is it? The bottom line is to set people up to succeed. And, if they are not capable of succeeding in your workplace, then tell them directly—it shows respect for them as a person. It also speaks volumes about the culture of the organization.

We all want to know where we stand. Do you imagine that someone else working for you who observes the way you handled Betty will believe what you have to say in the future? You've probably reduced productivity by 10 percent because the other employees will have to spend some part of each day or week checking to see if their job is posted or maybe they will see your job posted. e

Do you have a workplace question you want answered? What do you want to know to make work a better place? Send your questions to DeSantisCP@aol.com to get Chris DeSantis' two cents as to what he thinks you might want to do.

Chris DeSantis uses his 20 years' experience in training and development as an independent consultant. He specializes in the design and delivery of management and organization development interventions. A presenter at Leading Edge Alliance seminars, DeSantis focuses his work on assisting individuals or groups in identifying obstacles to effectiveness and subsequently works with them to create user friendly solutions aligned with the company's strategic initiatives. He earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Notre Dame, an MBA from the University of Denver and an MA in organizational development from Loyola University.