Clammy hands. Lead in your shoes. A conversation you donโt want to have.
You feel your team member has been underperforming this year. Youโve been struggling with what to tell him. The rating youโre giving him means no salary increase. You know he disagrees and that the conversation might escalate.
You prepare for an unpleasant experience. Hoping for the best.
<<pause here>>
Performance reviews. Still used in many companies, and about as fun as getting a root canal.
But they donโt have to be.
What can help you make these conversations easier?
๐ฆ๐ฒ๐ ๐ฐ๐น๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฟ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐บ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐๐๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ฏ๐น๐ฒ ๐ด๐ผ๐ฎ๐น๐.
Without these, itโs hard to fairly assess their performance, and explain your decision.
๐๐ถ๐๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐ผ๐ป๐๐ถ๐ป๐๐ผ๐๐ ๐ฐ๐ผ๐ป๐๐๐ฟ๐๐ฐ๐๐ถ๐๐ฒ ๐ณ๐ฒ๐ฒ๐ฑ๐ฏ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ธ ๐๐ต๐ฟ๐ผ๐๐ด๐ต-๐ผ๐๐ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฟ.
There should be no surprises during a performance review conversation. It should be a high-level summary of all performance related conversations that year. Most of us postpone feedback because we fear confrontation. The reason? The incorrect assumption that giving feedback is a negative thing. Itโs not. Giving constructive feedback is an essential part of your work, and necessary for your team to grow.
๐๐ผ๐ปโ๐ ๐ณ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฟ ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ถ๐ฟ ๐ฒ๐บ๐ผ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐. ๐๐ฒ๐ ๐ด๐ผ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐๐ถ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐๐ผ ๐ฏ๐ฒ ๐น๐ถ๐ธ๐ฒ๐ฑ.
As a manager, some decisions, like who gets which raise or promotion, will piss of certain people. That’s why it’s so important to act with clarity and integrity, setting clear goals, and being able to explain your decisions.
People might get emotional, even angry. Thatโs okay. When that happens, give them some space to either vent or let it out. During heated moments, pause talking about the topic itself, address the emotions calmy, and continue with the topic when things have settled down.
Even if you do all these things, you still might have to deliver bad news (like no raises due to budget cuts). The better you can explain your team why, the easier the conversation. And the better you understand your managementโs reasoning, the better you can pass on the message. Donโt be afraid to ask your manager all the questions you need in order to do this.
When done well, performance reviews mean your team knows what success looks like, how to get there, and how theyโll be rewarded.