The changing process of performance management

Many companies are changing their approach to performance management. While the immediate change employees see is the removal of an annual review and / or appraisal grade, the change to the process it is the longer term impact. This means that managers and employees regularly talk about the business and employee contributions.

You can see companies introducing new vocabulary: commitments vs. goals, connections vs. partners, continuous focus vs. strengths, contributions vs. achievements, or things to consider changing vs. opportunities or weaknesses. Let me share some examples from my life:

• Commitments: Years ago, a boss told me to minimize my compromises, but know each one. This advice stuck with me over the years. This word seems more powerful than setting goals. How many goals have you set for yourself in your annual performance plan and haven’t met them for one reason or another? On the other hand, the commitments seem stronger and personal.
• Contributions: Consider listing your accomplishments at the end of the year for your performance summary. Now, think about what would happen if you were to translate that list into contributions. Honestly, I think a few years I could have cut my list of accomplishments in half, which contributed to the bottom line of my company.
• Things to consider changing: A sales manager once told me that I should consider changing my approach to developing new customers. She never said that I was not good at generating leads (a term for “weakness”), but I understood what she meant and started looking for successful colleagues and learned a lot from them. Two years later, I headed my department on new customer accounts. This manager was ahead of her time.

As competition in the market increases, smart companies are looking for ways to compromises employees, develop those employees, and ultimately keep employees. Changing the performance management process can help you achieve all three goals.

• CompromisesWhen managers talk to employees about performance on a regular basis (instead of a few times a year), it shows an interest in the employee because of the manager’s investment of personal time. As managers spend time with employees, they learn what motivates employees and prove to be most effective in keeping employees engaged.
• Develop: Telling employees where to “keep focusing” helps them know what a company values; and identifying areas where employees should “consider trying to do something differently” shows you where they can improve without demoralizing the employee.
• Keep: The cost of turnover is high and adding new employees takes time and money. Why not invest in your current employees by sharing ongoing feedback and encouraging them to stay?

In short, as a manager, spending time with employees is important and the words you use are important. Talk to your employees on a day-to-day basis, making it part of your company culture. As everyone knows, an engaged workforce results in higher retention. Be part of the process change and start moving away from an annual feedback loop, even if your business hasn’t made the leap yet.