As the year of 2016 is ending very soon, it is also the time to review the year’s performance, there is a growing trend that many companies are abandoning the traditional performance reviews. However recent researchers found that formal performance reviews still hold an important aspect for both supervisor and subordinates to make sure that they are on the same page about each other expectation. Instead of ditching the performance appraisal process, more importantly, how do we make the process more purposeful? The guidelines as follows:

A self-evaluation

Employee must be honest with themselves about how they have performed in the role. Take for example, an employee must be able to take note of the accomplishments when they exceeded expectations or have gone below and beyond the job description, and also to look at areas where they need to improve in term of performance.

Review of job description

Job description can be changed over the time, especially if there are changes in the organization structure. It is a great time to discuss the addition of responsibilities that may help employees to grow and achieve more fulfillment in their work.

Focus on outcomes

Supervisors must be able to evaluate objectively by focusing on the subordinate’s performance result, in this case, KPI scores can be a good base to measure an employee’s achievement; it is more like a black and white result, whether he/she met the given objective or scores.

Do not get defensive

The reason of having a review in the first place is to give and receive the feedback that will help to improve job quality and productivity. Avoid going on the defensive mode or blaming others for the performance failures. In fact, do not discuss about other teammates at all and focus solely on individual performance.

Plan ahead

Performance review is a good opportunity to discuss the goals for next year and beyond. Before the review, employees should be encourage to write down their goals, or if he/she has any skills gaps where supervisor may be able to provide additional training, resources, or guidance to help him/her achieving the goals.

Keep in mind that your performance review, whether overwhelmingly positive or somewhat disappointing, is always a great opportunity to learn, grow, and move forward in your career.

Till next year, Happy New Year!