Start with a private conversation to understand the cause before you label it a performance problem. Separate ability, motivation, clarity and circumstance, because the fix differs for each. Set specific, observable expectations with a timeline, and check in weekly rather than saving feedback for review season. Document what you agreed. If it does not improve, move to a formal plan early and honestly, never as a surprise.
Why interviewers ask this
This question separates managers who avoid conflict from managers who address it. The interviewer wants diagnosis before judgment, specific observable expectations rather than vague impressions, a documented trail, and speed. They are also listening for whether you treat the person with respect while still protecting the rest of the team, who usually notice the problem weeks before the manager acts on it.
How to structure your answer
- Diagnose the cause before you call it a performance problem.
- Set observable expectations with dates, in writing.
- Increase feedback frequency instead of waiting for a review cycle.
- Say when and how you would escalate to a formal plan.
Example answer
First I check my own assumptions, because output is a lousy proxy. I look at review comments, tickets and incident work, then I ask rather than tell. In the case I am thinking of, a mid level engineer went quiet for six weeks and I assumed disengagement. The real cause was that they had inherited on call for a service nobody had documented, and they were firefighting alone most of the week. That is a management failure, not a performance one. We fixed the rotation, wrote the runbook, and their output recovered inside a month. When it genuinely is performance, I get very concrete: here are three specific examples, here is what good looks like at your level, here is what I need to see over the next six weeks, and we will talk every Friday. I put it in writing the same day. I never let a formal plan be the first time somebody hears there is a problem, because that failure is mine, not theirs.
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See how it worksFollow-up questions to expect
- How would you handle it if the cause turned out to be a personal issue?
- At what point do you decide someone is not going to recover?
- How do you keep the rest of the team from quietly carrying the slack?
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