Managing Performance, Absence and Capability — From Early Signs to Fair, Confident Action
Performance concerns and absence are everyday management issues, but the manager's response can determine whether the employee improves, feels supported or enters an unnecessary formal process.
This practical course helps managers distinguish performance, conduct and capability, diagnose what may be driving the problem and hold clear, fair conversations. It places reasonable adjustments, health, evidence and early support before formal escalation.
The full day provides substantial practice in preparing for meetings, setting improvement objectives, considering complex health and disability factors and working within capability and disciplinary procedures.
Want to discuss whether this programme fits your organisation? Email training@elevateimpacttraining.com
Performance, Conduct or Capability — Why the Distinction Matters
The wrong label leads to the wrong response — and the wrong process
This full-day programme gives managers the depth to work through complex, overlapping cases with confidence, not just the straightforward ones. Managers often confuse inability, behaviour and underperformance, leading to the wrong response. Avoided conversations allow unclear standards and frustration to grow, and absence patterns require enquiry and evidence, not assumptions.
A health condition or disability may trigger a duty to consider reasonable adjustments — this must be explored before capability or disciplinary action, not after. Fair documentation should show expectations, support, review and the employee's response throughout.
The programme reflects current Acas guidance on performance management and reasonable adjustments, adapted to the client organisation's current policies and authorised decision routes.
This programme combines a practical diagnostic with real skills practice, so managers can act early and fairly — before a situation becomes a formal process.
Early, Fair Action Changes the Outcome
Managers often confuse inability, behaviour and underperformance, leading to the wrong response — and avoided conversations allow unclear standards and frustration to grow, often for far longer than they should.
Absence patterns require enquiry and evidence, not assumptions, and a health condition or disability may trigger a duty to consider reasonable adjustments long before any formal process begins. Fair documentation should show expectations, support, review and the employee's response — not just the outcome.
The aim is not to turn managers into HR specialists. It is to help them diagnose accurately, act early and document fairly, while understanding when Human Resources, occupational health or specialist advice is needed.
Half-Day Workshop vs Full-Day Programme
Both options teach the same Skill – Will – Resource – Health – Clarity diagnostic, but they serve different needs. The full-day programme is not simply a longer version of the half-day workshop — it provides substantially more meeting-preparation practice, complex case work and a full risk audit.
| Half-Day Workshop | Full-Day Programme | |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose | Practical diagnostic and early-action confidence | Deeper judgement, meeting practice and risk review |
| Performance diagnostic | Introduced and applied to scenarios | Applied to complex, overlapping cases |
| Absence & adjustments | Core principles | Extended, including health and disability depth |
| Documentation | Basic record-rewriting practice | Full meeting-planner and documentation exercise |
| Meeting practice | Short scenario decisions | Observed performance meeting with feedback |
| Improvement plans | Awareness | Full improvement-plan and capability-procedure practice |
| Case studies | Short scenarios | Extended integrated case study |
| Action planning | Personal 30-day actions | Manager and organisational risk audit |
Not sure which format is right? Speak to our training specialist on 07544 534759.
What Delegates and Organisations Gain From This Programme
Earlier and more confident performance conversations
A practical diagnostic for identifying possible causes
Clearer objectives, measures and review points
Fairer return-to-work and absence discussions
Greater confidence around disability and reasonable adjustments
Better records and escalation decisions
By the End of the Programme, Delegates Will Be Able To
- Distinguish performance, conduct and capability
- Set clear standards, objectives, evidence and measures
- Address emerging concerns promptly and constructively
- Use the Skill – Will – Resource – Health – Clarity diagnostic
- Hold fair absence and return-to-work conversations
- Recognise when disability or health may require reasonable adjustments
- Create accurate records and agree proportionate next steps
- Know when to involve Human Resources, occupational health or another specialist
- Prepare and conduct structured performance and capability meetings
- Create a fair improvement plan and apply formal-process boundaries
Full-Day Programme Outline
The programme uses realistic scenarios, a structured meeting planner and observed practice throughout — the goal is confident judgement, not a script.
Delegates learn why distinguishing performance, conduct and capability matters, using a classification activity on short workplace examples. The session moves into setting clear standards and objectives — turning vague expectations such as "improve your attitude" into observable, fair measures — before delegates practise addressing problems early using the Elevate Impact performance diagnostic: Skill – Will – Resource – Health – Clarity.
Delegates explore the purpose and tone of fair absence conversations, covering short and long-term absence, trigger points and return-to-work discussions, before moving into disability and reasonable adjustments — considering adjustments before capability or disciplinary action, and applying fair judgement to health, pregnancy-related absence, menopause and neurodiversity.
Delegates rewrite judgemental or vague notes into a balanced management record, then use a structured meeting planner to prepare for a performance conversation. An observed skills practice puts a delegate through a difficult performance conversation with structured feedback, followed by an integrated case study — "Excellent for five years" — and the Manager's Performance and Capability Risk Audit.
Suitable for Anyone With People Management Responsibility
This practical course is designed for anyone responsible for people, workplace decisions or day-to-day employee management.
Want this tailored to your sector or organisational context? Email training@elevateimpacttraining.com
Flexible Delivery — Wherever You Are
The programme can be tailored around your organisation's policies, review cycles, reporting routes, forms and current management challenges. Delivered in-house or virtually, available across England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and Europe.
Face-to-Face
Delivered at the client's workplace, with examples adapted to the organisation, sector, policies and workforce
Virtual
Delivered through Microsoft Teams or Zoom using structured discussion, breakout activities, case studies and practical skills work
Bespoke
Tailored around your policies, review cycles, reporting routes, forms and current management challenges
Legal Content Reviewed September 2026
Employment law, official guidance and organisational procedures continue to develop. This programme reflects the law and official guidance available at the time of delivery and is adapted to the client organisation's current policies and authorised decision routes.
Elevate Impact Training reviews relevant Acas performance and reasonable-adjustments guidance on a monthly basis and updates the content of this programme where appropriate. The programme reflects official guidance available at the time of delivery, and is always adapted to the client organisation's current policies and authorised decision routes.
Important: This programme provides practical workplace training and management development. It does not constitute legal advice or authorise individual managers to start formal action or make dismissal decisions outside organisational procedure. Human Resources or specialist legal advice should be obtained for individual cases.
Legal content last reviewed: September 2026