3. Keep it Fresh: Another reason for an employees apathy towards their job may be boredom. Have they mastered the key components of their job and desire the opportunity to learn something new and challenge themselves? The theory goes that you do not grow in your comfort zone. These highly competent and committed employees need the opportunity to coach or train other employees that are new or struggling in that given task.

4. Identify Strengths and Weaknesses: As Jim Collins wrote in his best selling business book Good to Great, you need to make sure the right employees are on the right bus in the right seat. Could it be that a fairly new employee is not in the right seat? While you may not have the right seat, it is a benefit for the employer to try and match the strengths of the employee with the position for maximum results. There are many tools available to help discover the employee’s strengths. One way would be to have them read and complete the “Strengthsfinders 2.0” survey found at the back of this book. It will identify the top five strengths of an individual and how to best manage that type of strength. According to Marcus Buckingham in his book Now Discover Your Strengths, fifty four percent of workers are in the wrong job. I would also recommend using the Herrmann Brain Dominance Instrument or HBDI that identifies the preferred thinking style of workers and the type of work that would best be suited for that thinking style.

So what happens if you have set clear expectations, given proper frequent feedback, offered more challenging work to your competent workers and they still choose to coast? Now is your opportunity to help them coast to a different job. You will need to begin the proper documentation process that will help you successfully terminate their employment with you. This would include having copies of their performance evaluations showing the improvements needed, ways in which you coached and offered training to improve their performance and any “fair but firm” letters stating that their behaviors must change or termination of the position may follow.While these activities are not a manager’s favorite thing to do, you are doing a disservice to your organization and employee when you keep them in a position for which they are no longer suited to do. You need to set the stage by writing clear expectations of their job performance so they can choose to conform or exit themselves. Follow your organizations policies and procedures and make sure you have given that employee the chance to correct the behavior that is keeping them from being successful.