Performance Review

Preparation is the key to an efficient and effective performance evaluation meeting.

Without preparation, the process will be slow and frustrating for both the staff member and the manager/supervisor. Good preparation ensures that both parties thought through any potential difficulties and have followed a reliable process that is both fair and objective. As manager/supervisor you should spend at least one hour doing preparation in this way.
Both manager and staff member should review the performance planning and agreement document in preparation to the performance appraisal. Follow the following procedure when preparing for a performance appraisal:

• Review the relevant business and team performance plan.
• Take note of individual goals and objectives that was agreed upon.
• Place emphasis on both performance and development objectives.
• Have the objectives been achieved or not, and to what extent?
• Identify negative achievements and identify possible reasons why goals and objectives were not achieved.
• Identify positive achievements and identify possible reasons why goals and objectives were achieved.
• Identify gaps and possible reasons for these gaps.
• Formulate constructive criticism in advance, focusing on both good and poor performance.
• Plan ways in which you will maintain and enhance self-esteem throughout the discussion.
• Think about how to create a positive atmosphere in the meeting (by not being defensive, demonstrating good ideas, listening to the other person carefully, maintain self-esteem, asking for clarification, etc.).
• Distribute copies of performance planning and agreement documentation as well as any review documentation at least two weeks before the actual performance review.

Employees have been managing their own performance throughout the performance cycle, from setting and monitoring performance and development objectives, to regularly reviewing progress with you. Consequently, review discussions should hold no surprises. This session should simply summarise past discussions, while the major focus is on continued development and future success.

It is important that the atmosphere in performance review meetings is positive and that both parties treat each other as equals. Make the other party feel at ease.

Remember that they are entering this meeting with feelings of unease, fear, trepidation and even hostility.

The manager’s/supervisor’s role in this meeting is to ensure that the organisation’s performance requirements will be achieved through the actions of the individual staff members they manage. This means the outputs identified as the business plan, and team/department plan will be achieved through the aggregated individual performance of staff.