Performance Reviews

Performance reviews are done once a year at the end of the calendar year; in addition to that, on a quarterly basis there will be an informal review of the performance.

The purpose of the performance review is to establish what happened in the last year, and to review the gaps and needs of the employee, and most importantly to plan for the future.

The process is as follows:

• The process needs to be explained to the employee.
• The objectives need to be set jointly.
• The performance review should always be a 2-way conversation.
• At the end of the appraisal, the action plan should be agreed upon jointly, with clear timelines.

As a line manager you will face both sides of the coin:

• Good performance: In this case it is advised to:
  • Show appreciation in a job well done.
  • Explore more objectives and responsibilities with the employee.
  • Identify the needs that will assist the employee in his/her new objectives and responsibilities.

• Poor performance:
  • Show appreciation for all of the objectives done.
  • Explore the root causes of the pending objectives.
  • Agree upon a solution for the upcoming year.
  • Explore reducing the objectives for a better performance.

There is a lot of resources for data in preparation for an appraisal meeting, some include:

• Attendance: to review the attendance of the employee in the past year.
• Last year’s appraisal: This is an important document that you can request from the Human Resources department in order to judge the performance of that employee last year and set the next year’s objectives.
• List of the learning and development programs: The list can be requested from the Learning and Development section, and will help you in identifying any/all the programs needed to close any gaps that your employees have. (specific technical training programs can be requested also)
• Job description: The job description can also help in identifying the key performance indicators for your staff.