So, this evening’s book is: Ten Minute Guide to Performance Appraisals

and my notes are:

APPRAISALS:

1. “Balanced approach” – give appraisee feedback to review and book the meeting for a couple of days afterwards.

2. provide comfort in the meeting:
- allow appraisee to review notes privately before meeting
- get their participation in setting goals
- self-monitoring feedback system

3. set tone:
- meeting is celebration of accomplishments
- performance, not personal appraisal
- candor and disagreement (disagreement is foundation of future agreement)
- accept responsibility for role in problems
- separate appraisal from salary review (worth saying to Pierre/Jeremy)
- use their suggestions on how they should improve

4. earn appraisee’s trust:
- be interested in their successes
- recognise their contributions
- criticise privately
- treat them as peers
- avoid comparing them to each other
- admit when you’re wrong
- allow them their own devices
- match words and actions

5. forge (emotional) agreements:
- agree on their strengths
- consider language used to discuss improvement opportunities (e.g. “How do you think you can improve your skills?” vs. “What’s the next level of success you want to achieve with these skills?”)
- agreeing the approach:
– allow them to choose their own devices
– if their approach won’t work, use leading questions to help them realise it won’t work
- to get their commitment to measures:
– ask for their estimate of what’s realistic
– ask what obstacles stand in their way
– help devise a plan to remove these obstacles

6. feedback systems:
- put interim goals and deadlines in place to ensure focus
- make it easy for the appraisee to know whether they’ve met those goals
- feedback guides success, recognition rewards success
- communicate expectations
- use communication triggers
- maintain feedback systems
- make it easy for appraisee to monitor own progress

how to minimise time with poor performers?

1. set expectations, with/out agreement
2. set deadlines, with/out agreement
3. create a self-monitoring feedback system
4. tell employee the ball is in his court
5. let him know his choice will determine his future employment

performance appraisals encompass:

1. evaluation of current performance
2. goals for improving that performance
3. definition of future rewards for achieving goals
4. feedback systems for monitoring performance
5. periodic meetings to discuss progress
6. corrective action when they’re struggling

vital components:

1. they can’t improve unless they know current level of performance
2. quantifiable goals, so success measurable
3. knowing what rewards to expect
4. ability to monitor self increases interest in process
5. periodic meetings encourage self-monitoring
6. requirement to report results encourages them to get on with it as don’t want to admit failure
7. corrective action determined in discussions that identify causes of failure

Daily Checklist:

- Have the feedback systems been updated?
- Have I reviewed the feedback?
- Have I publicly recognized all achievements?
- Have I honored my commitments to periodic meetings today?
- Did I earn my employees’ trust today?
- Were there any performance problems that I neglected to address today?
- Are there any concerns that I have that I haven’t expressed to my employees?
- Are there any expectations that I haven’t communicated to my employees today?

Weekly Checklist:

- Have I spent at least a few minutes with every employee this week?
- Have I recognized every employee at least once this week?
- Did I find some interesting ways to celebrate my employees’ success this week?
- Do any of my employees appear to be behind schedule in achieving their goals?
- For the employees who are falling behind, did I take time to discuss their problems and help them get back on track?
- Are any of these employees exhibiting signs of lack of interest or boredom with their work?
- If an employee is developing a morale problem, did I discuss it with her?
- If I’ve had more than two discussions with an employee about morale, did I employ the approach defined in Lesson 14 and place the employee’s future employment in her hands?