December 25, 2018

If your company is like most, the end of the year signals performance reviews and pay raise or bonus decisions.  However, I’m here to suggest a New Year’s resolution for our readers: do away with annual performance reviews.  Think about it: if your company is only giving your employees feedback on their performance once a year, odds are your employees do not feel engaged or valued and could feel perturbed if they receive an unexpected negative review at the end of the year when the employee thought they were meeting their goals.  Keeping lines of communication open with your employees throughout the year will enhance an employee’s feeling of inclusion, let them know where they are succeeding and where they can improve, and helps employees understand their goals and, if they are falling short, specific steps to take to improve.  My recommendation, then, is that your company adopt a process of completing monthly check-ins that are short and sweet with a specific agenda of talking points.  Keep the meeting to 30 minutes and try to hit the high points.  While this may seem tedious, these monthly touchpoints will be way more fruitful than a once-a-year, general, “you’re doing fine” or not talk.  To discuss how to make the most of performance reviews, contact one of our employment law experts today!