# Managing Underperformers: The Conversations Most Leaders Avoid | Ep18

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/candor-courage-at-work-7080621/managing-underperformers-the-conversations-most-leaders-avoid-ep18
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/candor-courage-at-work-7080621/managing-underperformers-the-conversations-most-leaders-avoid-ep18.md
Podcast: [Candor & Courage At Work®](https://stenobird.com/podcast/candor-courage-at-work-7080621)
Published: 2026-03-01T06:11:00+00:00
Episode link: https://candorandcourage.podbean.com/e/managing-underperformers-the-conversations-most-leaders-avoid-e18/
Audio file: https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/ge7xw94gmpufy2i4/Managing_Underperformers_The_Conversations_Most_Leaders_Avoid_E189n7vx.mp3
Processing state: not_requested
JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/candor-courage-at-work-7080621/episodes/managing-underperformers-the-conversations-most-leaders-avoid-ep18
Duration seconds: 1619

## Resource

If you've never had an underperformer, you are a leadership unicorn! It's something every people-manager deals with at some point in their career, and how you handle it impacts the whole team. In this episode, we walk through how to handle underperformance before it spirals, including: the honest questions every manager needs to ask themselves first, how to consider the full context around an employee's performance, and what to do when you really feel like you've tried everything. Learn more at candorandcourageatwork.com & connect with us on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/hr-habitude

## Actions

- request_transcript: `POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/candor-courage-at-work-7080621/episodes/managing-underperformers-the-conversations-most-leaders-avoid-ep18/transcription-requests` — Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode.
- read_markdown: `GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/candor-courage-at-work-7080621/managing-underperformers-the-conversations-most-leaders-avoid-ep18.md` — Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource.

A page view does not enqueue transcription. Agents should invoke `request_transcript` explicitly when they need this episode processed.

## Transcript

Full transcripts are not published on public pages unless there is a clear rights basis.