Whether you choose to hold annual reviews or quarterly check-ins, it can be difficult to introduce reviews for the first time. No matter your company size, it’s useful to set aside time to discuss goals, share feedback, and talk to team members about their career aspirations.
If you’re a startup or small business, you probably don’t have a tool to administer performance reviews and that’s ok. You can conduct a perfectly good review without expensive software. What’s most important is that your team has clear goals, and everyone knows when and how you’ll be evaluating their performance.
Here are tips to create your own performance review and feedback process.
You Can’t Have a Review without Clear Goals
Managers should ask all direct reports to document 3-5 focus areas or goals for their role at the start of each year or quarter. If you’re not sure how to set meaningful goals, consider using the SMART format.
- Explain that goals can include both job-based goals and professional development goals.
- Clarify any questions surrounding employees’ roles, responsibilities, and how their work contributes to company-wide goals and objectives.
It’s important that people have clear goals before sitting down for a review. You don’t want to surprise employees with feedback if they didn’t have clear objectives.
Five Step Reviews
- Choose a Timeframe: Leadership chooses a 1-2 week period for review meetings to take place between employees and managers. Most companies will schedule reviews according to the calendar or fiscal year.
- Communicate the Process: Send instructions along with the Performance Review form to all employees. Give them a due date and tell them where they can get help if needed.
- Employee Self Review: Employees are responsible for setting up time with their manager during the designated time frame. Ask employees to send their completed self review to the manager in advance so managers can add their comments.
- Manager Feedback: Managers enter their comments on the same form so you now have one review form.
*Pro-tip: Send the completed review to your employee a day before the review meeting so they can read it in advance and prepare for the discussion. That’s much easier than reading it in front of you while you wait.
- Sum Up Your Feedback: You want employees to leave the conversation with a clear view of where they stand. The best way to make sure your message is clear is to use the Summary portion of the review to make a clear statement about how they’re doing. For example –
Top Performer: I want to make sure you know how much I value you and look forward to working with you in the coming year.
Low Performer: I want to make sure you understand that your performance has been below expectations. I’m here to support you but need to see immediate and sustained improvement in your day-to-day work.
You get the picture – highlight the take-away so there’s no confusion about where they stand.
- Hold the Review Discussion: Managers and direct reports will meet for 1:1 sessions to discuss what they wrote and talk about future goals. If you have annual goals, you’ll still want to review and refresh them quarterly to keep them up to date.
- Store Documents: The completed review form should be shared with the direct report and saved in the employee’s file.
*Pro-tip: Sometimes employees disagree with your feedback and that’s ok. An employee’s signature indicates that they received the review, not that they necessarily agree with what it says.
Download our free performance review form to implement your reviews today here.
