A practical framework for managing your workforce
(Reading time: 5 minutes)
Not all employees contribute equally.
Some are exceptional performers who drive the business forward. Others are dependable people who keep the wheels turning. And then there are those who seem determined to make everyone’s life more difficult.
Yet many organizations manage all three in much the same way. Everyone gets a performance review, everyone gets a raise, and everyone is expected to be treated equally.
Is that really good management?
Fairness is important, of course. But fairness doesn’t mean treating everyone identically. It means recognizing differences in performance, contribution, and behaviour—and responding appropriately.
One experienced manager I spoke with divides the workforce into three broad categories: superstars, soldiers, and saboteurs. It’s a simple framework, but it raises some interesting questions about how we reward, retain, and sometimes manage people out of an organization.
Superstars: Keep them happy & accountable
Every organization has a handful of people who make an outsized contribution. They bring in the big customers, solve the problems nobody else can solve, or consistently deliver results that exceed expectations.
These are your superstars, and you don’t want to lose them.
Competitive compensation is a good starting point, but money alone won’t necessarily keep exceptional people engaged. Recognition, meaningful opportunities, career development, and challenging assignments all matter. Superstars want to know that their contribution is valued—and that they still have room to grow.
But here’s the catch: your best performer can become your biggest problem.
Consider the salesperson who lands a major account. The company is delighted, the salesperson is rewarded, and everyone wins. But what happens when the account becomes established and the salesperson continues collecting generous commissions without doing much additional work?
Now imagine that the salesperson has become so closely associated with the customer that management is afraid to challenge them. They start throwing their weight around, their performance slips, and their behaviour becomes increasingly difficult to tolerate.
Suddenly, the company has a problem of its own making.
As the experienced manager pointed out, compensation arrangements can contribute to this situation. If rewards continue indefinitely for work that was done years ago, employees may have little incentive to keep delivering exceptional results.
The solution isn’t to stop rewarding superstars. It’s to make sure the rewards remain connected to performance.
Set stretch goals. Review compensation arrangements regularly. Recognize past achievements, but don’t let them become a permanent licence to coast. And never allow one individual’s importance to the business to become an excuse for unacceptable behaviour.
Your superstars should feel valued, but they should never become untouchable.
Soldiers: Don’t take them for granted
Superstars may get the attention, but soldiers do much of the heavy lifting.
In this framework, soldiers make up roughly 70 to 80% of the workforce. They’re the reliable, competent employees who show up, do their jobs, meet expectations, and keep the business operating.
They may not be looking for a promotion every year or volunteering to work every weekend. They may simply want to do good work, earn a fair wage, and go home at the end of the day.
What’s wrong with that?
Absolutely nothing.
Not everyone wants to be a superstar, and not every role requires someone to go above and beyond every day. A good organization needs people who can consistently deliver what is expected of them.
The danger is that these employees are often overlooked because they’re not making headlines. Managers focus on retaining their stars while assuming everyone else will simply carry on.
That assumption can be expensive.
Imagine a new CEO or manager arrives and changes the culture. Long-serving employees feel that their contributions are no longer appreciated. Their working environment deteriorates, and one by one, they start looking for opportunities elsewhere.
Before long, the company is struggling to replace experienced people, transfer knowledge, train new hires, and maintain productivity.
Replacing an employee involves much more than filling a vacant position. It takes time for a new person to understand the organization, build relationships, and become fully productive. The costs of recruitment and training can be substantial.
Losing several reliable employees at once can therefore be far more damaging than losing a single superstar.
So, what should managers do?
Pay fairly. Treat people with respect. Provide clear expectations and opportunities to develop. Recognize good work and pay attention to the working environment you’re creating.
Don’t forget that a soldier today might become a superstar tomorrow. With the right support, training, and opportunities, reliable employees can develop into exceptional performers.
The point isn’t to demand that everyone become a superstar. It’s to make sure your dependable employees know they’re valued—and give those with the ambition and ability a chance to progress.
Saboteurs: Deal with them before they do more damage
We’ve all encountered them: the chronic complainers, the office politicians, the people who undermine colleagues or spend more time stirring up trouble than doing their jobs.
To be clear, someone who is struggling with performance isn’t necessarily a saboteur. They may need clearer direction, better training, or a manager who can help them improve.
Saboteurs are different.
Their behaviour actively undermines the organization, damages morale, or makes it harder for other people to do their jobs.
And they can be surprisingly difficult to remove.
Sometimes they’re long-serving employees whose behaviour has been tolerated for years. Sometimes they’re managers who impress their own bosses but treat their teams badly. And sometimes they’re former superstars who believe their past contributions entitle them to special treatment indefinitely.
In fact, a saboteur can be mistaken for a superstar if senior management sees only the results—or the polished presentation—rather than what is happening throughout the organization.
In one case I know of, a senior leader arrived at a company where the owner had been complaining about a particular employee for three and a half years. Within three months of the manager’s arrival, the employee was gone.
The problem hadn’t resolved itself. Someone had finally addressed it.
That illustrates a common leadership failure: knowing there’s a problem but repeatedly postponing the difficult conversation.
Meanwhile, everyone else is watching.
When disruptive behaviour goes unchallenged, good employees may conclude that management doesn’t care. Worse, they may start copying the behaviour. Why should they follow the rules when someone else seems to get away with ignoring them?
The longer the problem continues, the more deeply it can become embedded in the culture.
What should you do? Be clear about expectations, address specific behaviour promptly, and give people an opportunity to correct it where appropriate. If the behaviour persists, take decisive action through a fair and properly managed performance or disciplinary process.
The goal isn’t to manufacture a reason for someone to quit. It’s to address the problem honestly and consistently, following applicable employment requirements.
The cost of tolerating destructive behaviour is often paid by the good employees who eventually decide they’ve had enough.
Fairness doesn’t mean everyone gets the same raise
So how do you put this framework into practice without turning the workplace into a popularity contest?
Start with clear performance expectations and a transparent compensation system.
Employees should understand what is expected of them, how their performance is assessed, and how compensation decisions are made. Salary ranges, defined performance criteria, and regular reviews can help managers make consistent decisions.
Exceptional performance should be recognized appropriately. Employees who consistently meet expectations should receive fair treatment and compensation. Those who fall short should receive timely feedback and a reasonable opportunity to improve.
And feedback shouldn’t be saved for the annual performance review.
Recognize a job well done when it happens. Address a problem when it occurs. Don’t wait six months to tell someone that their behaviour has been causing difficulties for the entire team.
Most importantly, employees shouldn’t be left guessing about how they’re doing. If someone is underperforming, tell them. If they’re doing exceptional work, tell them that, too.
The objective is to make performance management an ongoing conversation rather than an annual surprise.
Building a successful, sustainable workforce
The superstar, soldier, and saboteur framework isn’t about permanently labelling people. Employees change, and effective managers need to recognize that. A soldier may develop into a superstar. A superstar may become complacent. And someone who is struggling may turn things around with the right support.
But leaders need to be willing to make distinctions and act on what they see.
Are you rewarding exceptional contributions? Are you looking after the people who keep your business running? And are you dealing with destructive behaviour before it drives away the people you most want to retain?
A strong workforce isn’t about treating everyone identically. It’s about recognizing what each person brings to the organization, setting clear expectations, and responding accordingly.
Good management starts with hiring the right people. It’s just as important to know how to manage them once they’re on board.
Larry Smith is the founder and president of Kathbern Management, an executive search firm based in Toronto. Kathbern helps companies find the executives and senior managers who not only have the experience and credentials to fulfill their responsibilities, but also have the emotional and “fit” requirements that will enable them to be successful in a particular environment. Kathbern simplifies the process and, through deep research, brings more and better candidates forward than would ever be possible through a do-it-yourself passive advertising campaign.
Learn more at www.kathbern.com, or contact us today for a free consultation about your key person search. Follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter.