If an offshore hire is underperforming, you manage the work, give feedback and raise the concern. The legal employer runs any discipline or termination. Under Montani's model, you tell Montani, and Montani runs the employment-side process.

This article covers that split and what affects timing.

Who handles an underperforming offshore employee?

The legal employer is the company that holds the formal employment relationship with the employee. For Montani employees, that is Montani. The client is the functional manager who directs the day-to-day work.

Directing someone's work does not make you their legal employer. Client decisions that affect the employment relationship go through Montani's employment process.

What can you do as the day-to-day manager?

You own the work. That means you can:

• Set priorities and assign tasks.
• Give work-related feedback.
• Evaluate functional performance.
• Provide records and incident information.
• Recommend a disciplinary outcome.
• Initiate a termination request.

If you see a performance concern, tell Montani. Montani then runs the appropriate employment-side process.

What must go through the legal employer?

Do not impose sanctions yourself. Montani administers discipline under Philippine employment requirements, company policy and the employment agreement. Where a client instruction conflicts with the law or the contract, the law and the contract win.

A common assumption is that managing someone's day-to-day work also lets you handle discipline or termination on your own. It does not. You direct the work and give performance feedback, while Montani, as the legal employer, handles the employment process. Raise concerns with Montani, provide specific documentation, and avoid issuing employment decisions yourself or taking action that belongs to the employer.

On termination, Montani:

• Communicates the decision to the employee.
• Administers notice requirements.
• Calculates and processes final pay.
• Issues the Certificate of Employment.
• Keeps the employment records.

The employee returns company equipment to Montani. You revoke access to your own systems and recover work product and confidential information. You bear the agreed termination-related costs under your commercial arrangement.

Is it a bad hire or a badly set up role?

Check before you escalate. Vague feedback such as "needs to improve" does not help anyone. Write down specific examples:

1. The agreed responsibilities and what was expected.
2. The task, the instructions given and the resources available.
3. What was delivered, and how late or incomplete it was.
4. The feedback you gave and when you gave it.

Sometimes the cause is unclear expectations or late feedback, not skill. The records will show which.

When a client raises a concern, Montani's first step is to understand what happened and gather specific examples. Montani needs to know what task was assigned, what was expected, what actually happened, and whether the expectations and feedback were communicated clearly. This helps distinguish a performance issue from a misunderstanding or a lack of clarity. Montani can then coordinate with the relevant parties and determine the appropriate next steps.

The standard probation period is six months, subject to the employment agreement and Philippine law. The performance cycle can include a third-month and a final evaluation. The employee self-evaluates, you evaluate, and the gaps are reviewed and targets set for the next period. Montani may meet the employee to discuss where the two evaluations differ.

Raise concerns well before the third-month review. If they surface only then, there may be little time left to fix them.

As Amie, Executive Assistant at Montani, puts it: "The earlier a concern is raised, the more opportunity there is to understand what went wrong, clarify expectations, and work toward a solution before the issue becomes harder to address."

A scheduled review should not be the first time an employee hears about a concern. Regular feedback gives employees a chance to understand expectations and improve while there is still time to address gaps. The third-month review is more useful when it builds on earlier conversations, documented examples and clear targets rather than introducing unexpected criticism.

What affects how long it takes?

This article gives no fixed timeline for ending an employment. Time depends on the employment agreement, Philippine law and the circumstances, because those set the notice requirements. The quality of your documentation and how quickly you respond also matter.

One published reference covers final pay. The DOLE legal query says the employer should release final pay within 30 days of the employee's resignation or dismissal, unless a better company policy or agreement applies (source). Under the standard arrangement, you do not pay the employee directly. Final pay goes through Montani's payroll.

Check your own agreement for the details that apply to you.

How Montani supports clients

Montani manages the employment side of the relationship, while clients manage day-to-day work, assignments, and performance feedback. When a concern arises, Montani helps clarify the issue, gather relevant information, and coordinate the appropriate employment-side process in line with company policy, the employment agreement, and applicable Philippine requirements. Raising concerns early and documenting specific examples helps everyone understand the issue and determine the appropriate next steps.