People can test differently in different frames of mind and different stages of growth and development. Another key aspect of these tests is that they look at a thin slice of the entire pie of human behavior and focus on a few narrow categories. Human beings are multifaceted, growing, changing creatures and when they think about themselves or others through given labels “I am an x, your are y”, they see themselves and others in this narrow light. This may then prevent them from taking on certain challenges or pushing themselves to grow in areas that could greatly benefit them. This also encourages assumptions about how they and others are going to perform or behave.

It is challenging enough to manage the complexity of human interaction and relationship building without giving ourselves and others labels – even worse, predefined labels. Labels are often used as the easy way out, as when we are able to categorize people, it gives us an escape from having to use our resources and goodwill to actually collaborate with them differently and find common solutions.

If we could get away from trying to categorize the complexity of a human being and begin to approach ourselves and one another with a mind that is open to limitless potential within the construct of each individuals talents and unique make-up, we will have taken a giant stride in opening up possibilities for innovation, performance and results.

What value do individuals and organizations actually get out of these processes?

How much time do organizations lose putting systems into place and then trying to enforce them?

How much time do leaders waste struggling to complete these reviews?

Most people see performance evaluations as a necessary evil that they need to get through (akin to filling out tax forms). They usually get bumped to the bottom of the “to do” list and sometimes never get done at all.

Performance review meetings are usually uncomfortable and unproductive.

From our experience, the 8 most important factors in an effective, value added review process are:

1. Context - Performance reviews are a real opportunity to increase organizational performance and impact the bottom line. A well done review contributes significantly to managing our most important assets, and to their wellbeing and growth. Often people get fired, have their responsibilities decreased or are gossiped about vs. being told what they could do better and how, through very specific performance feedback in their reviews

2. Organizational relevance and focus –The content of the review should be targeted to strategy and customized to culture. Often organizations use standard dimensions of leadership that have not been targeted towards executing on their key strategies and may not add tremendous value to their specific culture.  Focusing in this manner directly impacts individual and organizational performance.

3. Individual relevance – For recipients, it is motivating to link the areas of growth to their career path, vision and passion.

4. Balance & Manageability– Focusing on how to leverage a few key strengths reinforces what recipients is doing well and enables the organization to continue to benefit from these.  Keeping the areas for improvement to a few vital areas that will make the biggest difference in performance allows recipients to focus their efforts and build their skills in a sustainable and mindful manner.

5. Approach – The tone and overall intention are key aspects that differentiate a productive review process. Approaching the recipient with generosity versus criticism can transform the process and results. Ensure that your goals are to share information and to help the recipient grow and develop professionally, not to vent or complain. Remaining fact-based and focusing on concrete improvement, rather than finger pointing and blaming, allows recipients to hear the feedback in a safe space and leaves room for them to think about how to improve vs. needing to defend themselves. Another important component of a successful approach is to only suggest areas of focus that you truly believe recipients can accomplish. If you don’t believe in their potential to deliver in this area, improvements are very difficult to achieve and tend to go unnoticed.

6. Specific and Actionable – Be as specific as you can with concrete examples and actionable items. Ensure that there is a common understanding of expectations and agree on how improvement will be recognized and measured.

7. Regularity & Follow up – It is difficult to impact performance with an annual review. People should get regular reviews and these should be followed up on as an agenda item during regular meetings. Maintain open and informal two way communication to address issues as they arise.

Done in this manner the evaluation process can become a very rewarding experience for both parties. The recipient can experience rewarding growth, increased performance and a supervisor who cares enough to help them succeed.  The reviewer can experience real satisfaction by:

-          increasing productivity and performance

-          contributing in a meaningful manner to growing others

-          increasing staff retention

-          building a talent base for the organization

Do you sometimes wonder if the way that most organizations and unions work with each other makes sense?

How much time, stress, resources and effort is put into taking a position and coming back to the table again and again under stressful conditions? Then, if and when an agreement is reached, the result is often an unsatisfying mediocre one for all concerned.

Some recent examples that come to mind are the NFL and the NBA. Months and months of precious resources wasted on fighting over stuck positions, armies of negotiators, lawyers, representatives playing chess while the season is either delayed or threatened and millions of fans are impacted.

Similarly, in corporations production grinds to a halt, employees are dissatisfied and give their least possible effort, quality and results are impacted and once again, clients and the bottom line are directly impacted.

There is another way.

As in every situation that involves decision making and finding agreement, building trust and finding a way to communicate authentically, while keeping the most important goals in mind is fundamental.

Taking the time to design a process to address these issues and to build a foundation of common understanding before getting to the negotiation table pays immeasurable dividends and serves as a solid building block upon which key decisions can be made in a timely manner with clarity and purpose.

Building unity does not mean letting go of your core values or of your most important outcomes in the process. It doesn’t mean not serving your stakeholders in the most loyal and appropriate manner either. It simply means approaching the process in a manner that is much more likely to best serve your stakeholders and achieve your desired outcomes.

Authentic unity building with your unions is the shortest and most sustainable manner to create regular win wins.

 In most organizations, as you go down in the ranks the disconnect to the plan increases tremendously with the plan becoming a coffee coaster at best if it is lucky enough to make it out of the drawer.

 4 things can contribute greatly to solving this challenge:

1. Taking a highly inclusive approach to the actual planning process where key stakeholders and staff at all levels are given the opportunity to contribute and participate in some fashion. If you take this approach it is vital that this is done in an authentic manner where this input is taken into serious consideration. If not, it is better not to do this at all.
2. Plan carefully for roll out and implementation. This is as important as the actual plan.
3. Create a plan that is clear, short, inspiring and dynamic. Lengthy plans that are hard to read and complicated rarely inspire people to action.
4. Ensure that your approach is in alignment with your organizational culture.

Strategic planning can shift from one of the activities that people dread most to an energizing experience that can result in dramatically improving your organizations performance.

Do you think your senior people too experienced to need acknowledgment or positive feedback?

Through many years of working with executives, we have found that people are never too seasoned to be appreciated and recognized for their efforts, no matter how senior the position is or how confident of a personality the leader has.

What is meaningful recognition? Telling people that they are doing a good job is better than nothing, but it won’t go a long way towards retaining and developing your top talent. Thoughtfully selecting specific accomplishments or strengths, contributes significantly to;

• Job satisfaction
• Future effort
•  Helping others to build on their strengths

Everyone needs to hear from others that they are adding value and that they are appreciated, specifically the senior most executives in an organization who rarely get this type of  acknowledgement.