There is an on-going debate on whether or not performance evaluations, also called reviews, have value. Are reviews a waste of time or do they have value? Many of my clients have the policy written in their handbooks but don’t actually do them. Most of the time, they feel that the evaluations don’t have value and that it takes a huge amount of time to prepare them. I know that when reviews are done thoughtfully, they can give valuable feedback to employees. Feedback is especially important to those employees who want to grow in their career.
I agree with both points of view: evaluations can be a waste of time and energy and they can be an opportunity to teach employees how they can improve and grow. It really depends on the goal of the person writing the evaluation. If the supervisor is just hurrying through the process to get it over with and check a box, the remarks given as a result of that attitude will likely be reflected. If however, the writer intends to share their perspective and help the employee understand what they do well, what can use improvement and with suggested actionable goals, the result will be more useful.
There are other things that get in the way of giving an effective evaluation. One is that a new or untrained supervisor may feel uneasy about how to write and give an employee criticism. When the performance evaluation is thought of in the context of “constructive criticism”, regardless of how one tries to frame criticism as “constructive”, it has a negative connotation.
Then there is the discomfort of talking to the employee about performance issues. Even seasoned supervisors resist completing reviews because they don’t want to be in a situation with an employee that could be awkward or deal with an upset employee. From the employees’ point of view, they may be anxious about receiving their reviews because of a fear of criticism and the implications.
An easy option to changing the mindset of employees at every level is create a positive spin on evaluations. To achieve that change, replace “constructive criticism” with the term “feedback”. Feedback doesn’t have the baggage that criticism has because it is neutral.
With well-crafted communication, employees, including managers, can be influenced to think about feedback as a tool to learn from. Not as something used to denigrate an employee.
Here are some other tips to complete a productive evaluation:
• Communicate to the leadership the point and purpose of reviews
• Communicate to everyone on staff that evaluations are about learning.
• Remind employees that the review process is not life and death.
• The feedback is to be communicated in a neutral manner, without blame.
• The feedback is to be relevant to the employee’s job performance and how they behave as an employee. It should never be personal.
• Have the employees evaluate themselves and compare both evaluations during the evaluation meeting
Performance evaluations give employers a great opportunity to provide their employees with feedback that will help improve their quality of work.
Feedback is key to help improve employee performance, and can improve the company overall. It can also be a great way to motivate and incentivize employees to produce good work.
Feedback provides a great opportunity for employees to continue to learn and improve, by reviewing their performance you are giving them information on how they can be more effective in the workplace.