Don't Be That Manager

Mid-year reviews are full steam ahead; some welcome and loathe it.

I was reading articles about its use, along with the annual appraisal, and I always come to the same conclusion; It is not the review, it is the people who conduct those reviews.

I have read and screened 1000s of performance reviews in my life, and the inability of managers to form sentences around performance that actually give us valuable information is truly shocking.

They are almost always mediocre, saying absolutely nothing. Here are some examples:

• He is a hard worker, always on time.

• Goes beyond her responsibilities and helps others.

• Stays overtime when needed.

• Very good with co-workers.

• Needs to practice more problem-solving.

• Time management skill is lacking training is needed.

None of these tells us anything about the person's performance.

Then you have the frustrated ones who wait for this occasion to write outrageous things, so I end up crossing them out with my red pen and having conversations with the managers......

The mid-year review is not different to the annual appraisal. Read here what to consider and refrain from comments like on the picture.

Don't be that manager who ruins the value of a performance chat. Make it a useful one!

Happy Friday, and have a good belly laugh at those review comments:-) But don't write them!