Today, practically all advanced companies use KPIs, and questions related to control of KPI achievement are relevant for both the employer and the employee.

Anastasiya Mergasova, Associate of the Labor Law practice, held a series of presentations in the Finnish-Russian Chamber of Commerce and the St. Petersburg International Business Association (SPIBA) for members of the St. Petersburg business community on the topic of “KPIs for sales staff. Employee dismissal due to failure to achieve KPIs.”

During her presentations Anastasiya responded to questions from the audience, such as:

- How and where to set KPIs and to control KPI achievement by employees properly?

- Is it possible to dismiss an employee for failure to achieve KPIs?

- How to properly record the fact of failure to achieve KPIs?

- Whose side are the courts on in cases when companies do not pay KPI bonuses to employees?

Referring to the law, Anastasiya explained that a company can dismiss an employee only when the employee has not achieved KPIs because of improper fulfillment of his work duties and this can be proven. For the avoidance of any risks, it is also recommended to set forth the obligation to achieve KPIs in the employment contract/job description of the employee and not only in internal regulations.

Furthermore, Anastasiya told the audience that courts, while examining the question of whether non-payment of KPI bonuses is lawful, often take the side of the employer, if the optional/unguaranteed nature of such bonuses is defined in the company’s HR documents.

The participants of the meeting were very interested in the topic, and the events themselves were a success.