The following five tips are provided in an effort to help make the time dedicated to performance reviews beneficial to all involved.

Taking the time to hold a regular performance review is an important part of an employee’s development. Typically held once or twice a year, its objective is to provide staff and supervisors with an opportunity to meet in order to:

• Discuss employee job performance
• Establish professional development goals
• Set expectations and determine accomplishments

Tip #1. Don’t Rely on Your Memory Before, During, or After the Review

Before: The time leading up to an employee’s performance review date is important. During the course of this time it is very possible that important events and details will be forgotten.

• Creating a performance log establishes a method for recording and documenting the types of information relative to an employee’s work year.
• Keeping the individual employee’s logs up-to-date will prove handy when it is time to begin writing employee performance reviews.

During: Be prepared. Before sitting down with the employee:

• Establish a written outline that identifies the topics for discussion.
• Using the performance log information, write down key points that clearly illustrate and identify items that need to be examined.
• Document the discussions, noting questions and considerations.

After: Follow-up

• As a follow-up, create and share with the employee a document that provides a written agreement indicating a shared understanding of the employee’s job goals and expectations.

Tip #2. Keep the Language Positive

Try to use language that focuses on results and behaviors in a precise and nonjudgmental way, for example:

• When reviewing a time when the employee’s performance had been a problem, try to explain so the employee can focus on the work being discussed, and so they do not take the review as a personal attack.
• Avoid comments that can be considered:
  • Vague
  • Focused on the person, and not on the performance
  • Negative
• Use comments that will be considered:
  • Descriptive and specific
  • Encouraging and supportive
  • Positive

Tip #3. Discussion Points

Evaluating the employee’s performance can be an uncomfortable experience, but it doesn’t have to be. When a part of the review needs to focus on problems, address them one at a time by following these discussion points:

• Describe the problem
• Point out why there is a problem, for example:
  • Identify the established performance standards to be followed
  • Show how the standards weren’t followed and explain why this created a problem
• Establish a plan that identifies steps for improvement
• Identify ways to find support, for example:
  • Offer your help
  • Offer training sessions
  • Offer to help find classes

Tip #4. Bias

When creating a written review of an employee’s intangible traits, it is important to steer clear of comments that could be considered as biased. To avoid these types of statements, when writing of an employee’s intangible traits, focus on specific behaviors exhibited by the employee regarding a particular trait by following these guidelines:

• First, match the traits to the position
• Second, match the traits to the behavior.

Tip #5. Employee Self-Evaluation

Creating an employee performance evaluation that gives the responsibility for the initial assessment back to the employee is another way to gain feedback and open a dialogue. Asking employees to complete this evaluation also provides insight as to how they view their job, and to their considerations of their supervisor. Types of questions that will provide useful information include:

• List your areas of strengths and weaknesses for your position.
• Do you have the proper resources to complete your position? If not, what do you need?
• Are there any changes that you would make that would improve your effectiveness?
• How would you rate the communication within the clinic? Do you feel you are properly informed to perform your job responsibilities? How could communication be improved?
• What are your training needs?
• What are your goals for the time between now and your next performance review? How will you measure your progress toward these goals?

Putting these five tips to use can help to enhance performance review discussions and optimize feedback. For more tips on running a more efficient practice, contact your Covetrus representative today at 855.724.3461.

Sources:

http://www.businessmanagementdaily.com/glp/25459/performance-review-examples.html
http://humanresources.about.com/od/performanceappraisal/qt/tips-for-effective-performance-reviews.htm
http://hr.utk.edu/performance-evaluation/
http://vpfa.boisestate.edu/process/uformsdocs/pfm/SelfEvaluationQuestions.pdf http://www.inc.com/guides/201108/five-tips-for-a-smarter-review-process.html