Give the gift of an outstanding performance review.

As a 19-year corporate veteran, I have received good and bad reviews.  To be clear, when I am referring to good and bad, I am referring to the delivery of the information, the quality of content, and the overall lasting impact of the review. Performance review season is my favorite time of year because it forces reflection, forward-thinking, and conversation. As we approach performance review season, I would like to share my tips on how I give an impactful performance review:

Keep Notes

Throughout the year, I keep a blank Word document on each employee and periodically I will add notes on what went well, mishaps, difficult conversations, moments of motivation, and successes. I do this because a year goes by fast and if I do not write details down, I will never remember these important moments when the time comes.  For a performance review to be impactful, you need to give lots of specific examples. Speaking in generalities will only lead to confusion. These notes are crucial for remembering the details that will matter to your employees.

Set An Agenda

I send my team an agenda of what will be covered during the performance review in advance so everyone is clear on what will be covered and can prepare accordingly.

This is what a sample agenda might look like:

1.       Welcome & Overall Comments

2.       What went well that I would like to see more of:

      Tangibles – Examples specific to projects/work.

      Intangibles – Examples specific to mindset and attitude.

3.       Areas Of Opportunity that can be holding you back:

     Tangibles – Examples specific to projects/work.

      Intangibles – Examples specific to mindset and attitude.

4.       Review any self–evaluations specific to the company process.

5.       Review Any Peer Evaluations – specific to the company process.

6.       Performance Outcome – Rating, monetary, or grade level increase or decrease. 

7. Manager Feedback – I ask my team to review me as well.  I like to walk away with action items on how I can improve.

Allow Space

In the agenda above I will pause after each section and allow space for the team member to comment.

I allow 90 minutes for each review, and I block off the ½ hour before the review to mentally prepare myself and the ½ hour after the review to decompress or make additional notes. Not allowing enough time is shortchanging you and the team member.  If you are in the middle of an important conversation, you do not want to break the momentum to push a meeting back to pause and regroup. 

I believe there is an art and a science to giving an impactful performance review. If done correctly both the giver and receiver are coming into the review as their best self and there is a mutual and productive flow of conversation and feedback. No matter if you are in a large company or running a small business providing an impactful performance review to the people who work on your team is a gift.  If done well these reviews become a time that team members look forward to and they become dependent on them for career growth.