Annual performance reviews are usually conducted in the New Year, once the festivities around the holiday season are over and employees are back at work. However, they don’t happen in all organizations. They are not done simply because of employee resistance or because managers are uncomfortable with the process and tend to avoid having those difficult conversations.
Transform Your Performance Review Process
A powerful, well-crafted performance plan can impact your business bottom line by producing higher efficiency and effectiveness in the workplace. But just as your business is unique, all great performance plans aren’t created equal.
Convert a Mandatory Exercise into a Living, Breathing Part of Your Business
An effective performance management system needs to accommodate five things.
- Define and produce agreement on what type of performance is needed. Without a clear definition of what kind of performance is desired, it is impossible to develop and motivate employees who can meet or exceed the expectations.
- Guide the development of employees so that they have the skills and knowledge needed to perform effectively.
- Motivate employees to perform effectively. Even your best talented employee will perform at a high level only when motivated to do so.
- Be a primary source of information about how employees are performing and what skills and knowledge exists in the workforce. This information is critical to succession planning as well as to strategic planning.
- Retool the appraisal as needed over time.
A performance review has no meaning if the performance of your employees is not properly managed. Only then will your employees believe in the process. Your leaders and managers will be engaged and the caliber of your workforce will grow as a result.
They will believe in Santa!
Tell us how you are managing the performance of your employees in the comments section below.
