Regular meetings with your employees give them and you the time together to discuss any issues that have arisen. But what do you do when your weekly meeting isn't changing the negative behavior of an employee?

Break away from your regular meeting and schedule a meeting specifically to discuss the behavior (such as low output, improper processes, etc.) that you want to change. You don't need to give your employee advance notice of what the meeting will be about … just arrange for the employee to meet with you at a specific time.

Before you meet with the employee, make notes about what you want to discuss. Be specific. Give examples of exactly when and what has happened that needs to be corrected.

When you meet with the employee, take charge. Immediately tell your employee why you've asked them to meet with you. Give your examples of what they have been doing and what you want them to do instead. Don't just say, "do better." Tell them exactly what "better" means and how it's demonstrated to you.Ask the employee if they need anything (such as more training or equipment) to be able to perform as you've requested. You'll want to make sure your employee understood what you asked, so end the meeting by asking your employee to tell you what you just discussed and what is expected of them.

After the meeting, write up your notes about the meeting. Include the date and time, who was involved, what issues were discussed, and what results were agreed upon. Hand initial these notes and put them, along with your pre-meeting notes, in your file for that employee (hopefully, in a locked file cabinet).

Making notes about conversations with your employees are valuable for two reasons: (1) if problems continue, you have your notes to refer to, and (2) you can more accurately review an employee's performance over a long period for a performance review or promotion.

Watch for the next escalation level in this series!