Help me manage the following business situation: [MANAGEMENT SITUATION]. My team and operating context are [TEAM CONTEXT]. The outcome we need over [TIMEFRAME] is [DESIRED OUTCOME]. Relevant facts, constraints, and prior decisions are [FACTS AND CONSTRAINTS]. Build a manager-ready action plan. Separate verified facts from assumptions and unknowns. Do not diagnose an individual, infer motives, or recommend a performance action unsupported by the facts. If the issue involves performance, conflict, workload, or conduct, frame actions around observable behavior, expectations, support, documentation, and the policies or HR partner I should consult. Produce these sections: 1. Situation summary: five bullets distinguishing the management problem from its symptoms.
2. Root-cause hypotheses: no more than four, each with evidence needed to confirm or disprove it. 3. Options table: three approaches, with benefits, risks, required resources, effect on team fairness, and when not to choose each. 4. Recommendation: one approach, why it best fits the stated constraints, and what evidence would change the recommendation. 5. 30-day operating plan: weekly actions, a named role for each owner, decision points, and measurable signals. Include leading signals such as backlog age, handoff time, attendance, or response time where relevant, not only final outcomes. 6. Team communication: a short message that states the purpose, expectations, support, and next check-in without disclosing private information. Before answering, check that every action has an owner, timing, and observable result. Check that the plan applies expectations consistently and does not treat a rumor or assumption as fact. Ask up to 3 clarifying questions only if a required input is missing.
Fill in
| Placeholder | What to enter | Example |
|---|---|---|
| [MANAGEMENT SITUATION] | Describe the operational or people-management issue using observable facts. | Customer implementation tasks are routinely handed to support without complete notes, causing repeat work |
| [TEAM CONTEXT] | State team size, functions, reporting structure, and important working conditions. | A 9-person B2B software operations group: four implementation specialists, three support agents, one manager, and one analyst |
| [TIMEFRAME] | Enter the period in which the outcome is needed. | the next 30 days |
| [DESIRED OUTCOME] | State the result you need in concrete terms. | Cut incomplete handoffs from about 40% to under 10% while keeping launch dates stable |
| [FACTS AND CONSTRAINTS] | List known evidence, available capacity, policy constraints, and prior attempts. | Support logged 18 incomplete handoffs in May; specialists say the checklist takes too long; no added headcount; the CRM template can be changed |
How to use
- Paste facts rather than conclusions, including examples with dates, counts, and the work already tried.
- Check the hypotheses against your records before treating one as the cause.
- Confirm owners have authority and capacity before sharing the 30-day plan.
- Send this follow-up: “Turn the recommendation into a 20-minute manager agenda for the first team meeting, with two questions to ask the team.”
Variations
Weekly operating review
Use this to run a focused management meeting around metrics and decisions.
Create a 45-minute weekly operating review for [TEAM] focused on [GOAL] during [PERIOD]. Use these metrics and current values: [METRICS]. Include a timed agenda, the decision each section should produce, pre-read requirements, and an action log format with owner and due date. Exclude status recitals that do not require a decision. Check that every metric has a threshold or question attached. Ask up to 3 questions only if inputs are missing.
Performance conversation
Use this to prepare a factual, supportive one-on-one conversation.
Draft a manager conversation plan about [OBSERVABLE BEHAVIOR] with [EMPLOYEE ROLE]. Relevant examples with dates and impact are [EVIDENCE]. The expected standard is [EXPECTATION], and available support is [SUPPORT]. Produce a private meeting agenda, neutral wording, questions that invite context, agreed next steps, and a documentation note. Do not infer intent or make legal conclusions. Flag where HR policy should be checked.
Priority reset
Use this when the team has more work than capacity.
Help me reset priorities for [TEAM] over [TIMEFRAME]. Our proposed work is [WORK LIST], capacity is [CAPACITY], and non-negotiable commitments are [COMMITMENTS]. Create a ranked decision table using customer impact, risk, effort, dependency, and reversibility. Recommend what to stop, defer, or protect, with explicit tradeoffs. Draft a short explanation for stakeholders. Check that the total recommended work fits the stated capacity.
Tips
- Describe behavior and operational impact separately; “three handoffs lacked acceptance criteria” is more useful than “the team is careless.”
- Use a leading measure alongside the outcome measure, such as checklist completion before tracking reduction in rework.
- For a people issue, document what was observed and agreed, but keep private details out of broad team updates.
- Do not assign a plan owner who lacks the authority to change the process, staffing, or priority that the plan depends on.
FAQ
Can AI help manage an employee performance issue?
It can help organize facts, prepare neutral language, and identify questions to ask. Check your company policy and involve HR or counsel when the issue may lead to formal action.
Should I give AI names of employees?
Use roles or initials where possible and avoid private health, compensation, or disciplinary details. The plan should work from observable work facts.
How do I keep the plan from becoming another status document?
Require each action to have an owner, due date, decision point, and measurement. Remove updates that do not lead to a choice or an intervention.