Articles

March 2005: Manage This … Performance Review

I have yet to meet any managers, or anyone for that matter, who enjoy performance reviews. Why? Mostly because they take too much time and nobody likes giving negative feedback.

Some companies are doing away with performance appraisals altogether. I don’t think that’s the solution.

Instead, how about making reviews easier and more useful. That starts with managers who really understand what a performance review is about and approach it proactively. A performance appraisal is a written summary of all of the feedback -- positive and negative -- that has been given to an employee over some period of time. There should be no surprises. It is definitely not the only time to give employees feedback, and it is not just a method to get employees fired.

Continual feedback is far more productive and should help your employees. I worked with a brilliant man who was failing as a manager. But his manager avoided giving him feedback. After being transferred to another manager who did give him feedback, he told me how relieved he was. The feedback helped him understand the problems and gave him tangible goals for improvement.

One way to make performance appraisals less time-consuming is to keep an ongoing log of feedback that you give employees. I do it in Outlook Notes. If necessary, keep a hard file for copies of letters, memos and other relevant documents. When the time approaches for a performance appraisal, you have all the necessary documentation, and only need to provide summary comments.

You may never look forward to giving performance appraisals, but by approaching them actively and productively, you can make it a less dreadful and much more useful.

Manage This … You get to hire some fabulous new people—how do you make sure they are the best? See the answer right here on the second Monday in April.

Please feel free to call or write with questions or comments. I welcome your feedback.

Please pass this to others who would benefit from it.

If you want specific references for any of the material, please let me know.

Manage This … is a monthly eZine by Kerrie Halmi, Halmi Performance Consulting. Visit www.halmiperformance.com.