“Sandra Lamb has come up with a fantastic framework for organizing performance reviews and suggestions for how to best give finely-tuned feedback with eloquent words. This is a marvelously clever and much-needed book. Words don’t always come easy these days, and wordsmiths are a dying breed. Sandra is one of the very best. I highly recommend this book to you.”–Richard N. Bolles, author of What Color Is Your Parachute?

“If a manager desired a ‘how-to’ book that made performance reviews quick, easy and immediately useful, this is the book. I am recommending this book to every company I consult to. Why? Because it definitely is the best performance review book ever written.”-Michael Mercer, Ph.D., author of Hire the Best & Avoid the Rest

SECTION ONE
Rethink Traditional Annual Performance Reviews
“THE DEBATE STILL RAGES: does the annual performance review offer real value, or does it alienate employees from their managers? The answer is, of course, it all depends. Survey results indicate that the once-a-year review, when used as the only performance measurement tool, fails miserably to make lasting performance improvements. But when it is part of an overall performance improvement program, it can be very effective.

“The proper framework for all performance reviews is that the employee and manager first focus on the big-picture objectives: (1) increasing customer benefits and satisfaction; (2) adding value to the organization; and (3) contributing to the efforts of the team or coworkers…”

“…The successful manager will regularly

• Connect the employee’s daily performance to the organization’s goals
  and values
• Reinforce positive behavior; give employees feedback regularly and on
  the spot, using positive recognition to underscore positive behavior
• Review real performance and correct negative behaviors (before they
  become bad habits)
• Set goals—in concert with the employee—for growth, and develop
  strategies, steps, and timeframes for reaching them
• Motivate…”

SECTION TWO
Get Ready—Before the Performance Review
“The first item of business is that the organization needs to establish a system of measurement to assess the employee’s performance in terms of quality, quantity, cost, timeliness, and impact on other employees. This will make the review step in the performance process most beneficial…”

“…Quantifiable evaluations help employees improve. Consider this evaluation: “Your attendance record shows that you arrive at work on time 40 percent of the time. This needs to improve. You need to get that number to above 90 percent. What on-time attendance target can we set for the next three months?…”

“…Using a more precise scale puts teeth in the measurement process and helps the employee set incremental goals for improvement. Each organization must set its own metrics for measurement…”