Ignoring a Hunch and Rectifying When It Goes Wrong

When I first started in my current position there were several staffing issues.  In a relatively small office of 45 people, two of them blatantly didn't want to be there, several were toxic gossipers, and still several others were in the wrong positions for their strengths.  It took me about a month to clean out those who didn't want to be there.  I sat down with one and asked her what she wanted to do with her life.  She resigned the next day and sang my praises.  This gained me significant credibility with the board and I was placed in a permanent seat in all decision making meetings.  The other resigned a week later for a position that would relocate her closer to her sister, one step ahead of my plan to move her into a less stressful role.  During this time we had an eager young student come to us.  Everyone who worked with her said she did a good job, although she was quiet she did whatever she was asked while she was here.  I made a sacrificial lamb out of the gossip at the front desk and had a dream of the perfect candidate for that role.  I interviewed a few different qualified individuals but, in spite of my reservations about the Quiet Girl, my optimism got the better of me and I offered her the position.  She already had knowledge of how the office works, she was familiar with our Practice Management system, and everyone seemed to think she picked things up quickly.  This left me with a Superstar and the Quiet Girl as our two front desk associates.  Fast forward almost three months and Quiet Girl is just not getting it.  Her quietness isn't nervousness, it's lack of confidence.  In everything.  She was great as a student and given one task, but to multitask at the front desk is beyond her abilities.  We had 80 patients yesterday for one provider, she checked in 12 of them.  TWELVE.  For a little perspective, the girl who started yesterday checked in six during an afternoon at our other (far less busy) office.  I should have gone with my instinct and just thanked Quiet Girl for her time as an extern, but I had hoped that she would be able to speak up for herself once she got some training.  I had a discussion with her last week regarding her training and time here.  She seems to think everything is fine and she's happily asking the same question for the 12th time and driving my Superstar absolutely crazy.  I feel responsible for helping her, I genuinely want to see her succeed, but I'm afraid this is clouding my ability to release her back into the wild.  The plan is to pull her aside and have a genuine discussion, point out some specific examples of what she needs to improve on, and stop just short of placing her on a written PIP.  The biggest problem is that we just hired another provider, so we absolutely cannot afford to have someone not pulling their own weight while I get another new MA up to speed.  I figure I have to give her a week to work out her issues, which doesn't seem like a fair amount of time, but this is where the business partner side comes into play and I have to do what is best for the company.  I firmly believe it is a disservice to an employee to keep them somewhere they are not going to succeed, but I just have such a hard time admitting defeat and getting rid of her so soon.  Wish me luck on helping her reach her potential, whether that's here or somewhere else.