A few years ago, as fresh IC/Manager hybrid with a couple juniors, I found myself with a junior who wasn't growing well relative to other hires (same team, different team, hires from colleges mostly, some bootcamps too). The two of us didn't talk about performance or contributing or engagement enough. I raised some alarms with my management peers and my manager, but I think it was too late. We transferred them to another team, hoping another team (less independent, more team based), environment, industrial vertical, new manager would foster some growth. A few months later the company let them go.<p>About a year later, they asked me for a recommendation and I said sure, I will do my best. A recruiter called me, I tried responding via voicemail but no follow up ever came around.<p>I really struggled to identify weak performance back then. I gave everyone the benefit of the doubt. I also kept the topic at bay for too long. My regrets include my slow response, but my regrets extend to the unknown, if I helped ruin this kids career.<p>You really do need to ask how they're doing, how they think they're doing, and if you have any concerns, air them early so there's time to change.