Strategic HR Technology Investment: A Comprehensive Checklist for Global HR Teams
Performance review processes and approaches differ from organization to organization. These reviews are intended to be fair and unbiased evaluation of employee performance.
Performance review can be an effective tool to motivate employees and improve organizational productivity but why do employees dread them? For a few reasons like inaccuracy, being biased and contributing to decrease of employee morale, employees tend not to like them.
According to TriNet Perform Survey that was conducted by Wakefield Research, 22% of millennial employees have called in sick because they were anxious about receiving their review.
Many companies today are reinventing their performance review processes in a way that they contribute to an increase in employee productivity and improvement of employee morale at workplace. Do you want to reinvent performance reviews at your workplace too? Here are a few tips for you.
It is important for employees to understand the workflow in their organizations. In most organizations, only the information enough to get the job done is shared with employees. This approach not only damages the work culture but also decreases employee engagement and morale. The first step to change this is to encourage open communication throughout the organization. The next is to allow employees to take their own decisions, this improves employee accountability throughout the organization.
Also read: Performance Management: Are you doing it right?
One of the most damaging mistake that managers tend to do during performance reviews is basing the whole review on employee’s past performance. Change this approach and focus more on the future. Take into account the organizational goals and understand the role of the employees in contributing to these goals. Analyze their pace and style of work based on past work but do not make the review entirely about it. Instead, talk to them about the plans you have for their future at your organization.
It is important for managers to understand the technological and budget requirements of their employees and provide them with necessary resources that contribute to their productivity. Though taking initiative as an employee is an important aspect of performance, you cannot expect employees to do everything by themselves. So, discuss this aspect with your employees and set a budget for their role and provide them with necessary resources.
The approach for performance reviews can be different for different organizations but one of the most common issue that employees face with reviews in all organizations is that they do not get enough feedback. Frequent employee feedback helps employees gain a clear understanding of what is expected of them and gives them a proper direction. Managers also can utilize frequent employee check-ins and keep track of their employee progress from time to time.
Also read: How Weekly Check-ins Help You Increase Productivity At Workplace
This is one of the most underrated aspects of employee appreciation. When employees are good at their job, they need to know it from their managers. This motivates them to get better and contribute to organizational success. Recognizing and rewarding employee performance goes a long way. This not only motivates the employee being recognized but also the other employees to do their best to be recognized by their managers.
Also Read: 5 Mistakes That Hurt Employee Recognition Programs
Like said before, it is important to frequently check and validate employee performance. In the same way, it is also important to change goals every quarter so that employees do not get stuck in a rut working for the same goals for one whole year. Quarterly performance goals give both the employees and managers a scope to experiment and implement new approaches of work.
This is one of the mistakes that managers do not even realize making. Some managers tend to make the whole review about what they feel about the employee performance and never make it easier for employees to participate in the discussion and give inputs. Always ask employees after review, if they feel that the review was fair enough. This gives you a scope for starting a two-way discussion with employees.
Always remember to be open to feedback from employees. Performance review meeting isn’t just for managers to evaluate employee performance but also for employees to discuss what they expect from their managers. Being open to feedback from direct reports is one of the best approaches to improve yourself as a manager.
Do you want to know how to conduct the perfect performance review? Talk to our experts!
