Leadership experts have spent a lot of time examining the use of annual performance reviews as a means of driving engagement. Most agree that even when they are executed well, once-yearly evaluations do little to drive real results or create meaningful change.
What does drive results? Ongoing performance feedback. Effective leaders strike a balance between annual reviews and consistent feedback throughout the year to help team members make the necessary adjustments to do their jobs well.
Here are three articles from various leadership experts to help illustrate the effectiveness of consistent and ongoing performance feedback.
Ongoing Feedback Eliminates Poor Performance Déjà Vu
Kerry Patterson addresses the critical question of why employees fail to change in a piece on the Talent Management blog. “Leaders often feel stuck when they tell a direct report to improve, then the next review comes around and the person hasn’t improved,” he writes. “Employees likewise feel stuck.
Nearly 2 out of 3 employees in the study said they’ve received negative feedback, and yet only 1 out of 3 has ever made a dramatic change based on this feedback. Of those who failed to change their behavior, 10 percent said despite their efforts, they didn’t see any real change.”
Patterson argues that enacting real change doesn’t come from detailed performance feedback alone. Such feedback is necessary, but without an improvement plan and ongoing meetings to discuss progress, managers and employees will get stuck in an ongoing cycle of performance review déjà vu.
You can follow Kerry Patterson’s company VitalSmarts on Twitter @VitalSmarts
Webinar With Real-World Examples: Year-Long Feedback Drives Performance
The Human Capital Institute produces webinars and webcasts that are free to view for community members. In David Mallon’s webcast, “Don’t Just Do It Once – Do It All Year Long,” viewers can see the positive impact that ongoing feedback can provide their organizations. Companies that supplement annual performance reviews with regular coaching sessions consistently outperform their competitors.
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In this session, Mallon discusses the ways in which social learning can help you take your team to the next level. He provides real-world examples of how top organizations changed their culture in order to make ongoing feedback a priority.
You can follow the Human Capital Institute on Twitter @Human_Capital
Real-Time Feedback Increases Repeat Positive Behavior
On the TLNT blog, Derek Irvine takes a look at how Kelly Services and Adobe Systems improved performance by scrapping their annual performance reviews in favor of ongoing coaching and employee recognition. The case studies in this piece are not long; instead, Irvine pulls the most relevant practices and results from each company’s overhaul. He highlights Adobe’s insightful use of what they call “feed-forward,” instant, real-time feedback to help employees repeat positive behavior and adjust behavior that leads to negative results.
You can follow Derek Irvine on Twitter @DerekIrvine
