Dr. Dobb's Journal Fall 1998
If you are preparing to start your career or just beginning to work, you have probably heard about or possibly experienced your first performance review. Your review can either be a source of useful career information, or a source of frustration. What should you do as you prepare for it? In this article, I'll look at the performance review and share some hints on how to make it work for you.
In today's competitive marketplace, it is essential that employees understand their roles in the organization. For many organizations this is the opportunity to not only assess employee performance, but also review present/future roles and provide employees with advice on their careers. Management also needs to measure performance to support quality programs and certifications, such as ISO 9000. But does this really help the employee to plan their careers and develop new skills? And how does management ensure that their employees understand how they fit into the corporate picture, and what skills will be needed for the future?
When doing a review, your manager's point of view is based on the following assumptions:
As an employee, you should:
For a new employee, not all these suggestions are applicable. But you can still assess your present assignment and determine how you are doing on the goals assigned to you.
In most companies, there are annual reviews, on-going reviews, and the 360-degree review, which is a subset of the annual review.
The annual review is typically done either at a set time during the year, or it can be tied to the employees start date. Since most companies perform the review as part of the salary adjustment process, the reviews are usually done at a set time of the year. This can put a new hire at a bit of a disadvantage since they may not have been with a group long enough to have an impact. In some cases, you will be handed a form with comments from your manager already on it. You will then be expected to write out a description of your assignment and also respond to your manager's comments. In other cases, you will be handed a blank form and be asked to write out a description of your work. In either case, you should also include any courses you have taken, a status report on graduate study, and any significant activities (involvement in a professional activity, for instance).
The concept of the on-going reviews is the result of work by W. Edward Deming, the well-known advocate of Quality programs. In general, Deming advocated that coaching should be day-to-day, not once a year. He also believed that interviews should be designed primarily to improve performance, and should not, at the same time, weigh salary or promotion in the balance. Deming recommended this practice because, as a natural reaction to financial discussions, most people will focus on money and miss the comments on performance/career development.
Others suggest that goals should be set as a part of the process and these should be specific and challenging. At the completion of the performance appraisal, specific actions that must be taken to improve the employee's financial or career advancement should be identified. According to John Hoschette in Career Advancement and Survival for Engineers (Wiley Interscience, 1994), expectations should be listed and reviewed at the next review.
One downside to performance reviews is the issue of ownership: Neither the manager nor the subordinate has any sense of ownership. Why? Because they were not involved in the design or administration of the process. And, as Dick Grote points out in The Complete Guide to Performance Appraisal (amacom, 1996), typically no training has been provided for the manager or for the employee. To overcome this, take some time before your first review to talk with peers and your manager about the process. See what your peers think of the process, and how they handle it. Find out from your manager what is expected from you.
Now you may find that your peers treat the reviews like a Dilbert cartoon -- write down the latest buzzwords and speak in generalities, and your manager may be overwhelmed with the number of reviews he has to do and not be able to provide time for a long discussion. My recommendation is to look at what you have been assigned and ask yourself: Does this use my skills? Is this adding to my skill base? Does it use my strengths? Use the answers to these questions to prepare for your review.
Take Deming's advice and be proactive in talking with your manager about your assignments. As R. Weiss says in The Technical Career Navigator (Prentice Hall, 1995), problems should be identified and corrected, or at least be in work before the next performance review. Don't wait for surprises. If you are unsure, ask!
One new trend we are seeing is the incorporation of so-called 360-degree reviews as a part of the annual review. In a 360-degree review, you will be rated not only by your manager, but also by other managers, customers, and your peers. This allows you and your manager to see how you are viewed by those you work with. The downside of the 360 is you don't know who said what about you, and you won't be able to respond to comments.
Will the performance review impact your salary? Again, in most companies the answer is yes. As a part of the review, your salary adjustment for the year will be discussed. Make sure you learn how salary adjustment determinations are done at your employer. Are they based on performance (pay for performance), yours as an individual, or by the results of your team/division? A rating within the organization? Or is a general increase given to all employees? Are you eligible for gain sharing (bonuses) or stock options? Once you understand how this is done, you can position yourself for future salary adjustments/bonuses.
The impact of teams on performance reviews is as much an issue as grades are for members of a design project team in school. To support the performance review of an individual member of the team, specific goals must be set for the team, and a role/skill identified for each team member. Team members should then be evaluated on how they contributed to the team's overall success. In many organizations all individuals receive an equal salary adjustment or share in the bonus for the group. This can cause problems when some team members feel they carried a greater part of the load for the group. Make sure you understand how your employer handles the evaluation and rewarding of teams.
So here you are in your first review and your manager is listing several things you do well and also several areas you need to continue to develop. You should review the information and work with your manager to develop a plan to enhance your skills and improve in any deficient areas. But don't focus all of your energies on the deficient areas. You will also want to focus on improving your strengths. Bernard Haldane is the creator of the concept of "Dependable Strengths" (see Career Satisfaction and Success, JIST 1996). Helping employees to identify what it is they do well and further developing these skills can be an important output of the review process. The performance review should strive to assist the individual in achieving mastery in a field of expertise, develop new skills, and satisfy the organization's needs (see "The Engineers Life and Career in Today's World," IEEE-USA 5th Biennial Careers Conference Proceedings, D. Wilson, 1987).
The review process can be a useful means of collecting feedback on your performance. It will let you know how you are progressing within an organization and help you to plan your career. Remember, you are responsible for using the feedback from a performance review to manage your career. The direction your career takes is up to you.
DDJ