12 Steps to Outstanding Staff Performance Reviews

1.Establish Key Priorities. My clients all understand the power of this. However, if you haven't determined the 3 key priorities for each staff member, make this task an immediate priority. Key priorities are the most important things you want your staff member to concentrate on achieving over the next six month review period. It is critical both you and your team understand and focus on these.

2.Review Key Priorities. Assuming that your staff have been given their key priorities, the purpose of the performance appraisal is to review individual’s performance and remuneration against these key priorities. This review is a two-way open discussion with input from both parties. You should reach a consensus on your assessment - if not, discuss further. If a staff member comprehensively delivers on their 3 key priorities, their performance must be acknowledged and remuneration reviewed.

3.Set Key Priorities for Next Six Months. After reviewing key priorities in Step 2, some or all of the existing key priorities may have been completed in the prior period. Discuss this with your staff member and introduce new key priorities where appropriate. Remember to limit these to three although fast-track senior staff may have as many as five.

4.What Barriers, Obstacles and Hurdles need to be overcome? Workshop with your staff member any barriers that either of you see may block them from succeeding with their key priorities. Be honest and spend time here.

5.Discuss Their Opportunities for Personal & Professional Development and Ask Where Are They Stuck? Sensitively discuss together where there are gaps in their performance. Both provide feedback on areas to focus on development. Ask them to tell you where they are stuck and what successes and opportunities would be achieved if they got "unstuck".

6.Analyse What You Can Do. What can you do now and over the next six months to help the individual break through the barriers, obstacles and hurdles ahead of them? Be open, committed and genuine.

7.Assess Them. Are there any successful performance and resulting outcomes achieved by the staff member that need to be acknowledged now? Remember that acknowledgement of performance can come in many guises - verbal, promotion, bonus, benefit or pay increase (now or at next review).

8.Assess Yourself. Ask them to tell you what you are doing as a Manager that's working for them and what you're doing that isn't working. You must be open and not resist the feedback. Use this time to develop your listening skills. Discuss this together and agree on another way to work together on this in the future. The ability to facilitate this step well is incredibly powerful and empowering.

9.Regular Scheduled One-On-Ones. Do you ensure that every staff member has a periodical 1-1 meeting with their Team Leader? If not, implement now. The regularity of these 1-1 sessions can be as often as daily (if circumstances require) but certainly monthly at a minimum. This is where you discuss their progress on their key priorities and help staff achieve them. This is real management.

10.Summarise Your Agreement. You've almost reached the end of the staff performance appraisal, however this step is critical. You need to summarise with the staff member exactly what you've just agreed upon for the next six months. Agree verbally and then write it down. Forward it to the staff member. Agree on how you will monitor and measure it. Make it clear that future performance appraisals will be determined against these key priorities and measures.

11.Diarise Management Action. I recommend you ensure that all follow up action to the performance appraisal is attended to or diarised within 48 hours. This includes any remuneration adjustments and promised assistance in removing immediate hurdles or obstacles. It also includes sending staff a summary of agreed priorities and booking periodic 1-1 sessions. If you don't do this promptly it gets forgotten. If you fail doing this step, your staff will not believe in your leadership and management so forget about true engagement and accountability from them in the future. They will see you as uncommitted.

12.Diarise Next Six Month Review. Everyone's busy, we're out of control and you simply don't have time. Not good enough. Diarise your next six month review and make these one of the non-negotiable, non-cancelable and non-rescheduled activities for the year. Make this a rule for the entire business and never weaken on this. Your business and staff deserve it. Be a leader.

Darren Bourke, Business Influence, 2008. You are welcome to “reprint” this article online as long as it remains complete (including the “about the author” information at the end).