More than once is required, and in more than one way. Tell them individually, tell them as a group, confirm your conversation with a written follow-up, chart progress in both public and private, meet periodically with individuals and groups to review progress and ways to improve and enhance performance. Whatever you do to your employees they will do to each other, to their subordinates, and to your best customers. What goes around comes around. So, when you need to counsel with them be a human, not a machine.
Most companies are interested in keeping the employee on board.
But they often approach the counseling interview in an adversarial way, with a negative attitude and threats to back up their performance demands. 3 Intent vs. Impact Don't assume the intent behind any action of another person. You are not a mind reader, and you don't get paid to analyze the intentions of your employees. Let each person know you are not as concerned with their intentions as you are with positive behaviors which lead to good habits and which lead to improved performance. Work with each employee to design and implement a written, goal oriented, action plan.