Make a so-called “Bad News Letter,” or Negative Message, to someone outside the corporation.

Bad News Letter

Mr. John Chikwen,

I appreciate you reaching out and for the contributions that you have made to our division in the last year. However, I am denying your request for a recommendation for promotion. As much as you have contributed as an IT recruiter, there are also some key areas of improvement that must be honed before I can recommend you to the Account Manager Position.

As I mentioned, I am grateful for your dedication to our team, and your willingness to stay late in order to complete your work does not go unnoticed. However, as you are well aware, I hold my employees to stringent performance standards, and if I were to grade you today, I would give you a C. This is not to say that I cannot recommend you in the future, but I want to see you prove yourself as a successful IT Recruiter before you move on to the Account Manager position – one that requires yet more planning, dedication, and leadership.

As I am sure you recall, you have barely met the minimum standards for performance during my last two appraisals. Rather than exceed expectations, you have skimmed the surface and done just enough to get by. Mind you, the work you have completed has been satisfactory, but our division needs excellent Account Managers, not ones that are barely meeting requirements. In order for me to recommend you for a promotion, you must push beyond your regular capabilities and prove to me that you will not only meet requirements as an Account Manager, but exceed expectations.

In order to prove yourself a worthy candidate for promotion, you must accomplish the following benchmarks within the next six month period. First, you must average sixty phone calls per day and schedule at least five in-person interviews per week. Of the five interviews per week, I expect you to place at least one tech professional in a job every two weeks. Furthermore, your attrition rate must be less than eight percent, and I want to see a twelve percent average spread per contracted worker. In addition, you must average a 95 percent over the next six phone shops. If you accomplish each of these benchmarks, and I witness a measurable increase in effort over the next six months, I will gladly reconsider recommending you for promotion.

I encourage you to continue working hard in the office; the benchmarks I have set for you will be difficult to attain but you are more than capable of accomplishing them. Thank you again for your request, and I look forward to helping you grow professionally over the next six months.

Sincerely,

Your name here