Truthful performance reviews help employees on the job
One of the keys to being a successful manager is communicating in a direct, candid and constructive fashion with your people regarding their performance.
Historically, "performance reviews" have not achieved this objective. Too often, these reviews provide little if any tangible feedback that allows employees to improve their performance in specific areas. This lack of candid communication around employee performance can only produce a culture of mediocrity at best. At worst, it produces cynicism and apathy toward the employee evaluation process.
Recently, I spoke with Jim, a partner in a regional law firm, about this issue. Jim had conducted a seminar for new firm managers about the need to be more candid and direct in employee evaluations. The firm’s concern was that too many managers were liberally doling out evaluations of 3s and 4s on a scale from 1 to 5, with 1 being poor performance, and 5 being exceptional. According to Jim, many managers felt it was the safest thing to do to give their people 3s and 4s because it wouldn’t require any detailed explanation.
Further, even though some employees deserved an evaluation of 2, managers were avoiding this at all costs. Finally, through Jim’s coaching and mentoring, he convinced a second-year manager named Mary to give an evaluation of 2 to one of her people, named Jane. Mary also provided a detailed, written explanation attempting to justify this evaluation, which simply stated "needs improvement." Not only did Mary put the "2" in writing, but it only reinforced what she had been verbally communicating with Jane on many occasions over the past year. However, once the evaluation of "needs improvement" was actually put in writing, all hell broke loose.
Jane challenged it saying she "had no idea where this was coming from." Further, she went to another partner in the firm to complain stating, "If this stands, I refuse to work on any client under Mary’s direction." So much for accepting constructive feedback in a positive way.
Seminar Evaluation Form - News
At worst, it produces cynicism and apathy toward the employee evaluation process. Recently, I spoke with Jim, a partner in a regional law firm, about this issue. Jim had conducted a seminar for new firm managers about the need to be more candid and
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