Our approach
What we cover
Managing performance is fundamental to running a well-functioning business. When someone isn't performing, it affects the whole team, and leaving it unaddressed rarely makes it better. But how you handle it matters just as much as whether you handle it: a poorly run or inconsistently applied process carries real legal risk, even when the underlying decision to act was the right one.
We advise employers on how to manage underperformance and capability issues: capability procedures, performance improvement plans (PIPs), disciplinary processes where conduct is the underlying issue, and the documentation that makes all of it defensible. We also advise on exits where performance or conduct is the reason the employment relationship is ending, including where a settlement agreement is the right way to conclude things cleanly.
The legal risk in this area is real. An employee with sufficient length of service can bring an unfair dismissal claim, and one of the most common reasons claims succeed is that the employer ran a poor process: no clear warning, no genuine opportunity to improve, inadequate documentation, or a decision that was made before the process even started. A fair process, properly documented, is your best protection.
How we work with you
Not every performance issue needs a formal process. Part of our role is helping you assess what the situation actually warrants. A conversation about standards, backed up in writing, is sometimes all that's needed. In other cases, a formal capability procedure with a PIP and a structured review period is the right approach. We help you make that call, and then we help you execute it properly.
Where the situation involves a director or senior employee, the picture is often more complex. Employment law doesn't operate in isolation at that level. Shareholder rights, board authority, and contractual entitlements all become relevant. We advise on the full picture, covering both the employment and the corporate dimensions, so you're not getting half the story from two different advisers.
When the right outcome is a settlement agreement, we handle that too: drafting, negotiating, and making sure the agreement properly closes out the claims you need it to close. Sometimes a clean exit on agreed terms is better for everyone than a process that runs its course, and we'll tell you honestly when that's the case.
Who we work with
Most of our performance management clients are founder-led agencies, tech businesses and high-growth companies. In some cases, we help managers dealing with these situations for the first time and in others we support the client's internal HR team.
This service is for employers. If you're an employee who has been offered a settlement agreement as part of a performance exit, our sister service Check My Settlement can provide independent advice on settlement terms.
Pricing
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Case Studies
Meet the team
Whether it's putting in place the right documents for your staff, handling tricky processes or dealing with employment disputes, Georgiana will calmly navigate your business through employment law requirements.
Georgiana has acted for clients ranging from start-ups and SMEs across a host of different industries working at both a Legal 500 firm and boutique west end London law firm gaining experience and knowledge from a broad spectrum of clients and cases. She enjoys working with clients as their businesses grow and providing the employment law support, they need at each stage of those journeys.
Having worked on both the employer and employee sides, she has a real insight into how each party is likely to approach a matter. She delivers clear, pragmatic advice and practical solutions in a friendly, no-nonsense manner.
When not crafting bespoke employment solutions, Georgiana can be found running early in the morning, enjoying ballet performances and art exhibitions, going on long walks and being by the sea.
Alistair co-founded Tend Legal with Shona on a simple idea: that small and medium-sized businesses deserve the same quality of legal advice as large companies, without the large firm experience.
As a solicitor with a broad commercial practice, he advises business owners on the full range of issues that come with running and growing a company. That means employment law: advising on settlement agreements, workforce decisions and the day-to-day employment questions that land on founders' desks. It means commercial work: negotiating and reviewing contracts, supplier agreements, and the commercial arrangements that keep a business running. And it means corporate transactions: from business sales and acquisitions to investment rounds, share structures and restructures.
Before co-founding Tend Legal, Alistair was a partner at Woodfords Solicitors in South West London, where he spent over a decade building a reputation for clear, commercial advice to SMEs. He is known for his calm approach, his ability to cut through complexity, and his willingness to give a straight answer.
When not working or acting as taxi driver to his three children, Alistair can be found riding bikes or skateboards, playing various instruments, or at church.
Frequently Asked Questions
Not safely, if they have more than two years' service (or six months' service from January 2027). Employees with the requisite length of service have the right not to be unfairly dismissed, and a dismissal without a fair process is likely to be procedurally unfair even if the underlying performance concerns are genuine. The process needs to include clear warnings, a genuine opportunity to improve, and a fair hearing. We help you build that process correctly.
A capability process is for an employee who is trying but can't do the job to the required standard, whether through lack of skill, experience or ability. It's supportive in tone: you set out the standard, provide training and help, agree a reasonable timeframe (usually through a PIP) and review progress. A disciplinary process is for conduct: an employee who could do the job but isn't following the rules, for example through repeated lateness, carelessness or a breach of policy. It's about the behaviour and the sanction. The distinction is important because it shapes the procedure, the evidence and what a tribunal expects to see. Running a disciplinary for what is really a skills gap can make an otherwise justified dismissal unfair. Some cases sit in between, and we'll help you work out which route fits before you start. The ACAS Code of Practice sets the baseline for both, and a tribunal can increase compensation by up to 25% if you unreasonably fail to follow it.
There's no legal requirement, but four to twelve weeks is typical depending on the role and the nature of the issues. The PIP needs to set out clear, measurable targets, explain what support will be provided, and specify the consequences of not meeting the targets. Vague or unachievable targets undermine the whole process.
Being off sick doesn't automatically stop a performance process, but it does change how you handle it. Make sure the employee provides a fit note from their doctor, as required by law and your sickness policy, and find out why they're off. If the illness could be linked to the performance issues, or could amount to a disability, you may need medical advice and reasonable adjustments.
Keep in touch, check they're well enough to attend meetings, and be flexible on timing. A short absence usually means a short delay to the process. If there is a long-term absence, then you may have to start an ill-health process instead.
Sometimes, yes. If both sides want to part ways and the employee is open to a conversation, a settlement can be reached quickly and cleanly without the time and management resource a formal process requires. The settlement agreement protects you by settling employment claims. Whether it's the right approach depends on the circumstances, and we'll give you an honest view rather than defaulting to one route or the other.