Bad Employees

There is no such thing as a bad employee there are only people employed in the wrong job.  No one sets out to perform poorly and whether you are the manager or the employee there are ways to resolve this problem without resorting to discipline or termination.

1. Identify why this is not the job for you by asking yourself what you like or dislike about your current job. In the list of items you dislike determine which ones you can live with and which are deal breakers.  You will never find everything you like in one job.  Early in my career I realized that I did not want to work in a job that measured success primarily through subjective criteria.  I needed a clear definition of all expectations.
2. Determine if this is something you can fix in your current position either through further training, clearer objectives, by additional supervision etc.
3. If your circumstances can not be improved within your current position determine if the job you aspire to is available within the organization or are you going to have to look outside of the organization.  If a position is available within the organization a heart to heart with your manager explaining how you may best serve the company in a different role is recommended. This will result in either the manager helping you to pursue a different role or escalate actions to remove you from the organization as quickly as possible.  Be prepared for either scenario. 
4. Until this matter is resolved stringently adhere to all company policies and procedures.  Do not give anyone an easy excuse to terminate your employment.  When I was in sales you always knew when someone was being targeted because their expense reports came under heightened scrutiny.  

Whatever path is taken I wish you luck.  Feel free to email me with questions.