Performance management course

Managing performance confidently: Turn difficult conversations into team success

Get the performance management training you need to tackle underperformance head-on, motivate your team, and create a culture where everyone thrives.

The Fractional HR Department advantage

10+ Years supporting SMEs

100+ Years of collective expertise

Practical, proven solutions

What you’ll learn

✔ Handle performance issues with confidence:
Get the skills to tackle underperformance early and fairly without creating drama or hurting your team dynamics.

✔ Create clear performance standards:
Set goals and expectations that your team actually understands and can realistically hit.

✔ Conduct performance reviews that matter:
Turn those awkward annual sit-downs into regular conversations that actually improve how people work.

✔ Document performance properly:
Get the templates and processes you need to protect your business while supporting your people through rough patches.

What we’ll cover

Setting clear expectations 

Learn how to create performance standards that work in small teams, set realistic targets that stretch your people, and communicate expectations in ways that stick.

Having the hard conversations 

Get comfortable with performance discussions, like those early "we need to talk" chats and formal improvement plans. You'll get scripts and the skills to back them up. 

Performance review systems that work 

Build performance management processes that fit your business and culture. Just practical systems without the corporate bureaucracy.

When to help vs when to part ways

Know when to invest in development and when to make the tough decision to part ways. You’ll also learn how to handle both scenarios professionally and legally.

Who should take this course?

Line managers & team leaders: Build confidence in your performance management training

Small business owners: Handle performance issues without HR drama

New managers: Get the skills to manage performance from day one

Pricing

[TBD]

Stop dreading performance conversations

Join small business managers who've learned to tackle performance issues head-on. Get the tools, templates, and self-assurance to have conversations that motivate team members.

Frequently asked questions

  • Performance management training teaches managers how to set expectations, have difficult conversations, conduct meaningful reviews, and handle underperformance. This training focuses on practical skills you can use immediately, like knowing what to say when someone isn't hitting their goals or how to document performance issues properly.

  • Good performance management directly impacts productivity. In fact, the UK's Civil Service Local found that when performance management training focuses on genuine engagement and regular feedback, businesses see real improvements in how people perform.

    Our performance management course shows you how to make feedback regular and meaningful without corporate complexity so your small business gets actual results.

  • The five pillars give you a framework for managing performance properly, from start to finish:

    • Planning - setting clear goals

    • Monitoring - regular check-ins

    • Developing - skills and career growth

    • Rating - honest evaluation

    • Rewarding - recognition and consequences

    Our performance management course shows you how to use each pillar in your small business without the corporate complexity. You'll get practical systems that actually work for your team size and culture.

  • The 3 P's give you a simple way to think about what every team member needs to know:

    • Purpose - why the role exists

    • Performance - what good looks like

    • Progress - how to get there

    As a small business manager, you need to nail all three because there's no HR department to figure this out for you. Your team needs to understand why their job matters, what success looks like, and how they can actually get better at it.

  • The four components cover everything you need to manage performance properly:

    • Goal setting - what you want people to achieve

    • Ongoing feedback - regular conversations about how it's going

    • Performance evaluation - honest assessment of results

    • Development planning - what comes next

    In small businesses, these need to be simple but effective. You can't spend weeks on performance reviews, but you can't skip them either. Our performance management training shows you how to make each component work without the hassle.

  • 360 feedback means getting input from different people, such as managers, teammates, direct reports, and sometimes even customers, to build a complete picture of someone's performance. Full 360 reviews might be overkill for very small teams, but the idea of gathering different perspectives is smart. You can adapt this by asking a few key people what they think about someone's performance.

  • A 180 assessment is feedback from just your manager and your direct reports, or basically half of a 360 review. This works well for small businesses where peer feedback might feel awkward or isn't practical. You get the upward and downward perspective without making it complicated.