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From NetSpeed Leader Volume 30, December 2006
In my past roles in the banking and healthcare
industries, I've
noticed that most managers and supervisors detest
writing
performance appraisals. How do I know they detest
these
annual evaluations? They often don’t complete them
on time
and, in some cases, never complete them
before moving on to his or her next role.
This kind of resistance can stem from a number of
sources, chief
among them:
I’m too busy to get to this
task.
My employees don’t like getting
appraisals – they just want
raises.
No news is good news. They know I’ll
speak up if there’s a
problem.
I don’t want to demoralize anyone by
giving bad news.
I inherited a group of employees with no
documentation.
Well, I have news for you resistant types: Your
organization is
paying you the big bucks to coach, appraise,
correct, and
reward the employees on your team! So let’s tackle
these
objections one by one (and please forgive me for
coming on a
bit strong):
I’m too busy to get to this task.
Really? You’ve had
a year to plan, organize, and schedule this task. Your
job
includes people management. This sounds like a
problem with
time management and prioritization to me. Get some
help;
learn to delegate; elevate this responsibility to a
higher place
on your priority list, please.
My employees don’t like getting
appraisals—they just
want raises. I’m not so sure about that. You
don’t think
people are motivated by honest, clear feedback?
When was the
last time someone gave you positive feedback or a
pat on the
back? Didn’t that feel good? Don’t you appreciate the
focused
attention from your boss on that most important
person in the
company: YOU?
No news is good news. They know I’ll
speak up if
there’s a problem. That’s an interesting
perspective. Will
they speak up if there’s a problem? Do you
know
what they’re
thinking? What concerns or issues may be preventing
them
from contributing their talents? Do they have a forum
for
talking about their personal development needs?
I don’t want to demoralize anyone by
giving bad
news. Well, shucks. It would be great if your unit
could
run without feedback. Is there any possibility that
they could
handle your feedback given objectively and
supportively? Would
it make sense to engage them in problem solving and
partner
with them to improve their performance, instead of
blasting
them for failing to meet objectives?
I inherited a group of employees with
no
documentation. I’m sorry. Don’t you just hate
that? So
your predecessor didn’t fulfill their obligations as the
manager.
Is that really the example you want to perpetuate?
How about
raising the bar for everyone? Get input from your
employees;
get input from their internal and external customers;
get input
from their peers. Write the appraisals and make the
commitment to leave the place in better shape than
you found
it.
I guess what I’m really talking about is taking
personal
responsibility for creating a better experience for
your
employees, for the organization, for your colleagues
and,
ultimately, for yourself. Managers who develop the
self-
discipline to perform this most critical of management
tasks
are well-respected and appreciated. Why not be one
of them? |
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