“It takes so long for me to prepare for annual reviews – it wipes me out.”
“I don’t find performance reviews useful at all. It’s only a chance for my boss to talk at me about his/her goals for me, but isn’t really about ME.”
“Yes, we set annual goals at the beginning of the year, but I can’t remember what they are. My boss and I never talk about them again until the end of the year. Honestly, at that point, I have to dig them back up to remember what we talked about at the beginning of the year.”
YIKES!!!!!
Yes, those are actual quotes from employees that we’ve talked to over the years. Yes, this aligns with the statistics that have shown, for over 14 years, more than 70% of workers in the US are disengaged. Employees just don’t feel that their boss or their company takes a vested interest in their personal and professional development. (Caveat – it isn’t just about the boss – every employee has a responsibility to OWN his/her development and goals.
Even if the boss isn’t leading the way, a person cannot place blame for lack of development on anyone but him/herself. There is shared responsibility here.) It is bad across the board. And don’t give me the old line when it comes to sales people: ‘we talk about their production all the time. If they are hitting their numbers, they are doing a good job. What they care about is money. That is all.’
I can’t count the number of times I’ve heard that. Are you kidding me? You think what your people care about most is money? More than their growth, development, achievement, contributions, and being part of something bigger than themselves? I’ve got news for you – if you are in that camp, you just don’t know humans.
The good news is you can do better. The better news is that I’m going to share a simple blueprint to show you the way. Along the way, remember that this is about planning, engagement, and execution.
Planning:
• Set annual goals with each employee. The employee should come to the table with goals, and you should have some thoughts for what you want the employee to accomplish as well. This includes performance goals that are role based, and also targets that link to company culture, and professional and personal development. To maximize impact, goals need to be about the WHOLE person; connect their personal mission/why to that of the organization.
• This part of the cycle should begin prior to the end of the current year for the following year (for example, start the discussion in November 2014 for 2015). Ideally, goals are locked down by mid-January.
Engagement:
• Have regular 1:1 meetings with each employee – ideally, these are weekly or bi-weekly. There should be some structure to the sessions, while also remaining flexible to handle ad-hoc needs that arise. Part of these sessions should focus on the employee’s progress towards his/her annual goals. When this is part of the fabric of the ongoing discussions, what is most important remains what is most important! This also creates a regular feedback loop, so the employee knows his/her boss is totally dialed in to the employee’s progress, development, achievement, and growth.
• The employee runs the 1:1 – after all, it is his/her goals and development we are talking about here.
• Having these regular 1:1s makes the end of the year review just a summative conversation – there are no surprises, and no one needs to spend 3 hours preparing. You’ve been having pointed performance related discussions all year!
Execution:
• By following this blueprint, the focus shifts to GSD (get stuff done!) throughout the year. It is about growth, achievement, performance – in all aspects of the employee’s world. It is the job of the ‘boss’ to help remove obstacles in the way of high performance, to fully support the employee’s development, and to foster accountability.
This is a very straightforward blueprint. The complexity lies in all parties operating purposefully and consistently in execution. Everyone is busy, so don’t tell me how busy you are, and that you can’t possibly fit one more meeting in. Actually, I’d wager that at least 25% of the meetings you have: either aren’t necessary, don’t need you always in them, or could be less frequent. AND, if you actually install this performance system, many of the ad hoc conversations and emergencies will go away – you’ll actually have MORE time!
So, if you believe the people in your organization really are your most important asset, SHOW IT through a simple and powerful performance system.
