The end of the year brings on an annual task that most employees and managers do not look forward to—the performance review. Done well, it can be a meaningful opportunity to strengthen individual, team, and manager outcomes—as well as enhance relationships. Done poorly, performance reviews become a dreaded, stressful exercise with few positive results.
Great leaders tend to be gifted with crafting and delivering performance feedback that is fact-based, personal, and motivating. They work hard at that delicate balance between looking back over the past year’s accomplishments, while looking forward to building skills and experiences that will grow the capabilities and careers of their people.
We often have a front row seat observing our clients working through this important ritual. Here are our thoughts on best practices.
First, always link back to the goals that were set for results for the year. What progress was made against those goals, and how were they achieved? It works best if those goals were jointly agreed upon and had specific metrics and deadlines identified. Importantly, have the employee complete a self-assessment to encourage the worker to “look in the mirror” and honestly score their outcomes. The tricky part is when events or causal factors outside of the control of the employee deliver results short of expectations. How the employee adjusted their work and resources to overcome those obstacles can be an important criterion in rating results.
Second, it is about what was accomplished, as well as how. Work is most often carried out via teams inside and outside the company. Did the employee’s soft skills develop as noted in their goals? Things like collaboration, team or project leadership, or creative use of resources are important to the individual as well as the company.
Third, the annual performance review and merit action should not be a “surprise.” The top-performing teams and companies tend to actively engage in performance discussions all year long in weekly one-on-one meetings with their bosses, as well as quarterly or semi-annual checkpoint conversations.
Fourth, be very specific and use examples when comparing actual results against goals. And provide balance by looking at both the good and the bad, with a focus on what could be done better going forward.
Fifth, commit the time to do a thorough and complete job on performance reviews. Ideally, allow enough time to get documents submitted well in advance, so that the conversation can be about how lessons learned, resources and tools, and improvement ideas that can be put in place for the coming year.
A key part of doing a complete job is the linkage of performance to merit increases. Do NOT use a “peanut butter” approach where everyone essentially gets a similar raise. Rather, reward your top performers (especially those who may be in the lower third of the salary grade). Yes, that will mean a lower increase for those who had a mediocre year. And, yes, that is the point.
Sixth, and perhaps most important, find ways to help your employees grow their skills and capabilities to become even more valuable to you and the company. It may be new experiences, a special assignment that has high visibility, or an outside course or development program. Then work those career development actions into the agreed-upon goals for the new year, so that it is not lip service but a legitimate investment in your people.
Our perspective
It is true that people are our most important asset, for our clients and for us as an award-winning agency. Challenge your leaders to grow their competencies and their teams, just as you challenge your agency partners to do great work for you.
At Damen Jackson, we have helped clients get the most out of their people and the businesses they work in. We have the benefit of over 25 years of working with almost 800 clients to help your brand prosper. Our experienced, hands-on team is there as an extension of your team, working with urgency, smarts and shared ownership of results and outcomes.
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