Michael Carter and I were chatting this morning about conversations in the workplace and we came around to the topic of performance review as a series of conversations. This is how I prefer to conduct performance reviews.
Nothing in a performance review should be a surprise
Some of the best advice I ever received.
For managers and supervisors
Pre-interview questionnaires? Bin them.
Competency models? Bin them too.
Forms to fill out during the interview? You guessed it. Right to the bin.
Complicated meeting arrangements? Just pick a time.
Now you have the space for the following questions.
- Where is the business/department/team now? As a manager or team leader this is where you describe where you think the company is going. It sets the context for the remaining questions.
- What are your priorities? Your employee now knows where you’re going and you can openly discuss where they want to go within that plan. Heaven forbid you might find there is a mis-match of priorities here but in all my experience I’ve always been able to find something that aligns the two.
- What do you think you’ve done well? Allow the employee to discuss what they’ve done well since the last review (which, by the way was no more than three months ago was it?). You will be able to confirm and add more observations.
- What would you like to improve upon? Gather ideas for further education and find out, then agree, on how you can support your charge.
- How can I be a better manager for you? Now listen. DO NOT ARGUE. Any remaining dissatisfaction will surface. Come to agreement on how you can be a better manager. It may require the employee changing their behaviour as well.
For employees
If you are an employee, the process is even easier.
- What am I doing that you want me to keep doing?
- What am I doing that you want me to stop doing?
- What am I not doing that you need me to do?
Timing?
Whenever needed. Nothing in a performance review should ever be a surprise to the employee. At Arthur Andersen I was guaranteed an appraisal of some sort every three months or sooner if I had completed a project within that time frame. I find three months is a good timeframe. It gives time for behaviours to change but not so much that you need days to cover it all and so end up covering nothing. But be aware with this regular timing that the value drops for someone who is comfortable and capable in their job.