Well-timed feedback

When is the best time to tell employees that their performance doesn’t meet your expectations? As soon as you notice problems. If you wait until a more “opportune” moment to share negative feedback, their performance will only continue to slide.

Worse, staffers may think: “We’ve been messing up and the boss didn’t even tell us? It must not be that important.”

Another problem: employee resentment or embarrassment. No one wants to hear about poor performance after the fact.

— Adapted from Growing Great Employees, Erika Andersen, Portfolio, www.penguin.com.