**Dear SaaStr: Indicators It’s Time to Move on From an Employee**
**Signs It’s Time for a Change:**
1. **Missed Deadlines**
Regularly failing to meet deadlines without prior notice or updates indicates a pattern, not just occasional slip-ups.
2. **Angry Response When Behind**
When falling behind, they react emotionally instead of taking responsibility and resolving issues quietly.
3. **Avoid Accountability for KPIs**
They resist owning measurable outcomes and clear deliverables.
4. **Don’t Seek Help When Needed**
Struggles are often hidden instead of seeking necessary assistance.
5. **Constantly Busy**
Appear busy but rarely take on additional tasks to assist the team; unlike top performers who contribute more.
6. **Public Disagreements with Leaders**
While disagreements happen, they argue publicly instead of recognizing the need for leadership decisions.
7. **Resistance to Correcting Mistakes**
They resist fixing issues rather than simply addressing them.
8. **Avoid Essential Duties**
Push back on doing core aspects of their role, leaving others to compensate.
9. **Hire Mediocre Team Members**
Tend to perpetuate mediocrity by hiring “good enough” employees under them.
10. **Blame Others**
Avoid personal responsibility, often blaming teammates or external factors for failures.
11. **Excessive Gossip**
Spend significant time on office gossip, potentially harming team morale.
12. **Credit for Others’ Work**
Claim others’ work as their own rather than acknowledging the team’s contributions.
13. **Threatened by Talented Hires**
Feel insecure when skilled new hires join, particularly with role overlaps.
14. **Need for Excessive Management**
Require more management time than standard, indicating lack of fit and self-sufficiency.
15. **Dishonesty**
Lying about progress, accomplishments, or deadlines damages trust and causes long-term issues.
Mediocrity is contagious, lowering organizational standards. Quick and decisive action upon noticing these behaviors prevents further damage. Avoid settling for mediocrity by identifying red flags in the hiring process; early issues tend to amplify in the role. Hiring great talent is challenging, but mediocrity is detrimental.