There Are Several Deadly Sins of Performance Reviews

There are several deadly sins of performance reviews. Some of the problems that occur are playing the parent, talking too much, going legal, and structured to death. Psychology 101 teaches us that all human beings have to struggle at one time or another to free them of parent-as-authority figure. Unfortunately, however, many workplaces substitute a new parent in the form of a “boss.” By positioning the manager as the all-knowing evaluator and the employees as the hapless listening child, top-down reviews make it virtually impossible for the employee to “hear” the review with open ears and an open mind.

Top-down performance reviews directly invite managers to talk more than their children/employees can bear, before they too, thrust their chins defiantly in the air and stop listening. The best performance reviews invite a true dialogue between manager and employee. Each speaks, and each also listens. This is just a mutual exchange, adult to adult with clear guidelines, alignment of critical needs each has of the other, and actionable goals.

Managers have a tendency to at least cover the legal requirements. This how and why so many reviews fall under “File and Forget” approach that leaves both parties happily relieved of their obligations until next time. Legal is not the same as effective. Legal is not synonymous with meeting the company’s performance and profit goals. The performance review industry moved to tighten screws by crafting a more clinical; checklist style reviews presided over by a supposedly objective manager “judge”?

Overseeing performance and providing feedback is not an isolated event, focused in a performance assessment or evaluation. It is an ongoing process that takes place throughout the year. The manager and the employee should review overall expectations, which include collaborating on the