14 Must-Try Performance Review Tips
It’s that time again- performance review time. Whether you are a manager or employee, this time of year likely does not bring overwhelming feelings of joy. In many cases, it may seem like an inconvenience or even a waste of time. But what if performance reviews could produce a great conversation that engages team members to be their best? This article outlines practical strategies to help turn the stress-inducing performance review into a constructive, positive experience. Performance Review Tips for Managers 1. Set Clear Expectations Setting clear expectations is one of the most important components of an effective performance review. If expectations are not set, how will your employee’s performance be measured? How will you or the employee know whether they are underperforming or exceeding expectations? Ideally, expectations should be set at the beginning of the performance review cycle to ensure your employees know exactly what is expected from them and how it is measured throughout the cycle. Clearly defining and documenting performance objectives throughout the year ensures accountability between managers and employees. 2. Effectively Document Feedback Whether on a notepad, Excel spreadsheet, or an online performance management system, documenting feedback throughout the review cycle is vital to the review process. Keeping an organized log of feedback makes review time much easier for you and your employees. If you haven’t been documenting notes throughout the year, take time to do this now. Intentionally write down as many things as you can remember about your employee’s performance, workplace behaviors, and important conversations/comments from the past several months. Having these items written down before you give your feedback will show your employee you truly care, and it will give you more tools to coach them effectively. Interested in learning about performance review phrases? 3. Frequent Check-Ins Remember that chat you had in the hall with your employee back in February? Chances are, you probably don’t. Though these conversations may seem insignificant, the culmination of these side conversations can be extremely helpful to reference when coaching your employees. When it comes to performance check-ins, the intention is key. Some managers do not see the point in a formal check-in process because they communicate with their employees every morning. While this is a great way to stay in the loop of day-to-day operations, it is not effective for long-term employee development. Through intentional questions and documenting these check-ins/one-on-ones gradually, you can create an open, transparent dialogue that moves beyond your daily “hallway” or Slack conversations into real coaching and development opportunities. 4. Multi-Rater Feedback Oftentimes, managers have an unintentional siloed, one-dimensional perspective on employees. Even though you work around them and frequently check in, there are many experiences your employees have that you as their manager do not directly see. However, others who are inside and outside the organization engage in unique interactions with your direct reports. Through the use of a 360 degree feedback tool, or multi-rater feedback, these interactions provide greater insights beyond the scope of your individual perspective. If your organization does not utilize 360° Feedback, you might consider implementing a process that allows you to send and receive feedback throughout the organization. By asking for feedback, you gain a more holistic view of your employees. Feedback from co-workers or clients gives you insight into their true character and performance that may go unnoticed by you. This knowledge can be beneficial when preparing to coach and evaluate your team members. 5. Evaluate Your Own Performance as a Manager Spend some time reflecting on how well you think you have done managing your employees over the recent review cycle. Is there room for improvement? What can you do to ensure your employees are staying engaged? Managers have the greatest influence over whether or not organizations thrive. It should come as no surprise that there is a direct link between the engagement of your employees and the type of relationship they have with you. While you are not their only source of high engagement, 70% of the time you are their greatest success factor. Gaining the will of your team is critical. As you reflect on your performance as a manager think about specific ways you can gain this mutual trust, such as a one-on-one lunch or public recognition of a job well done. You will be pleasantly surprised at how candid employees will be when they deeply trust you. 6. Facilitating Effective Meetings The secret to effective meetings is a solid framework that guides the conversation. An hour or two is a short time to discuss an entire year’s worth of performance. Having an effective meeting structure is essential for maximizing your time spent during the review session. Utilize an agenda that organizes the discussion while prioritizing the most important topics. Although every job and organization is different, we believe that effective meetings consist of three main transferable components: Prepare ahead of time Have a manual or digital way to document and drives the discussion Do not forget the context (in this case it would be the performance review) The third point is a simple reminder that the review conversation should be just that: a conversation. It is not meant to be used as a way to solve all the organization’s problems but rather as an open dialogue for the employee’s ultimate benefit. 7. Give Constructive Feedback This may seem like a given, but it can be difficult to give an employee honest feedback that is not positive. You may worry your comments will upset them and, sometimes, it does. However, if you have given frequent feedback and recognition throughout the year, your crucial conversation will be better received. It’s false to assume that employees only want positive feedback! People want to know where they stand and receive coaching on how they can be better. Providing constructive feedback is the best way to coach your employees. Although the conversation can be difficult, these crucial conversations help grow and develop your team members in the long term. Just make sure the feedback is balanced
How to Run a Meeting in 3 Steps
I can’t count how many articles and posts there are about “How to Facilitate an Effective Meeting,” yet we so rarely see it done well. Why is this? The only answer I can come up with is that, as human beings tend to do, we overcomplicate matters and look past the obvious answers. We also are quite forgetful, abandoning the lessons we learned and forsaking the discipline of ensuring we execute every best practice, every time. Steps for Learning How to Run a Meeting 1. Prepare for the meeting. I like to shoot from my hip more than I’d like to admit. But a meeting will end up being a waste of time if even one participant is not prepared. That’s right. It’s not just the leader’s job to prepare. If there were agreed upon action items from the last meeting, each participant should be prepared to provide an update on his or her action items. And speaking of action items, as Patrick Lencioni reminds us in The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, team members must hold each other accountable for group decisions. Preparation also applies to sending the meeting agenda to participants ahead of time. This is not just for the introverts in your group, though I promise they will be hugely grateful if you follow this practice. Even the most extroverted, caffeinated of us in the room will provide better ideas if we’ve had a chance to mentally process and organize our thoughts beforehand. 2. Have a meeting “Scribe.” You can keep your pen and notebook, or your Evernote, or your One Note, or whatever else you prefer to document your action items on, but there should still be ONE designated scribe recording the group’s agreed upon action items following the simple format of: Who is going to do WHAT by WHEN? Why is this? Ever play the telephone game as a kid? It’s amazing how different we may interpret what we hear in the room, however, if one person is recording using the format stated above, preferably visibly for everyone to see, we decrease the chances of misunderstanding. Another note about recording action items: I have found the key to this begins with recognizing what is, and is not, an action item. How many times have you heard someone comment about an idea, another agree it’s a good one, only for the conversation to quickly turn to other items, leaving an uncertainty around the previous good idea? Was this just a good idea, or is it one we want to execute upon? If so, WHO is going to do WHAT by WHEN? Your meetings will be significantly more effective if someone is skilled at recognizing a possible action item and asking the group to commit to it, save it for later, or abandon it altogether. After the meeting, the Scribe should then share the meeting notes and/or action items with each participant. The Performance Culture System makes it easy to facilitate effective meetings with Agendas: Create a meeting agenda in the cloud and send to participants ahead of time with one-click. During the meeting, the “Scribe” records action items in the “Action Items” section. Go figure. At the conclusion of the meeting, copy the agenda for the next meeting date. Participants can now add topics or notes to discuss at the next meeting, decreasing unnecessary emails throughout the week. 3. Don’t forget the Context. I keep seeing this simple blunder come up. Think about the context of your meeting, especially the day of your meeting. Fridays are typically a terrible day to have a productive, and specifically creative, meeting. Your people have very little juice left at the end of the week and are already starting to mentally shut down. For goodness sake, move your team meeting to Monday or as early in the week as possible. This concept also applies to Check-Ins. The goal of checking in with your direct report is to ensure alignment at the beginning of the week, addressing problems before they occur, not waiting to correct them in your “week in review.” It’s important to pay attention to the personality profiles and motivators of your team. Do some of them highly value personal small talk before diving into the cold, hard facts? If so, consider discussing “Best Things” as the first topic. Each team member takes 1 – 2 minutes to share his or her one best personal and one best work-related thing that happened to him or her recently. This practice builds trust and begins the meeting with a positive atmosphere. And if your windowless office with uncomfortable chairs and no airflow is getting old, try changing the meeting site from time to time. Teammates with a high aesthetic motivator will gladly thank you and be amazingly more productive and engaged. When it comes to facilitating effective meetings, none of these concepts are earth-shattering, but the discipline to follow them consistently is what will transform your waste of an hour into an effective, enjoyable meeting.
