Review

Every year most employees go through a performance review process where the employee and the manager set goals for the upcoming year.  In the past 15 years of working in and with organizations, I have experienced a variety of performance reviews.  Each of them had the good intention of reviewing past performance and setting performance goals and metrics for the upcoming year. But each performance review process regardless of how well thought out and defined seemed to fall short. 

Some of the most common performance review blunders are:

  • Goals are set for the upcoming year but they are not the right goals
  • The performance review is a surprise to the employee
  • The performance review conversation is one way – manager to employee
  • If this is the first time the employee has heard any feedback on their performance during the year, it results in a lack of buy in and authenticity to the performance review
  • Lack of performance documentation throughout the year leads to a performance review that covers only the last 2 months of the performance year

There are probably many other blunders that could be listed above, but this list provides a glimpse of how a poorly developed and delivered performance review can turn even the best employee into a disengaged employee.

Now that you are aware of the potential blunders, what will you do to improve your performance review process?

It is never too late to change.