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The Office Performance Review

I was reading this post – 7 Awful things leaders do to their employees and it got me thinking about the performance review during the end of the term.

I have always been a little anxious about the performance reviews or the ones of late they call as “360 degree” meetings. Although it feels like a discussion between two parties as to what could be done better to improve the performance and stats for a company, it rarely feels so. More so, it feels like an opportunity for the manager to vent out his disappointment and give out a list of reasons as to why our pay hike is so low. Not that most managers are sadists, it is just that the way the office performance reviews are conducted are a little disappointing.

Well, I will stop lamenting or feeling bad about how these are conducted and how they can be done better. This post is about how we can handle it better so that we get an edge in the review meetings.

Over the course of our work, we all know that there will be some great things we would have achieved and some which we are naturally weak at. Although it is theoretically magnificent to have over achievers in a company, it is rarely real to expect that we all do the super human effort to make the company ‘The best in the world’. Sometimes, it makes me feel that it is also the time you get to bargain for your salary hikes. To make the negotiation more effective, here are 7 Tips To Cleverly Handle the Office Performance Review

The Office Performance Review: List of Achievements

Make a proper list of all those achievements you have done through the year. If it helps, send in a mail to your immediate boss copying his senior mentioning your view of how the year has gone by just as a preparation for the meeting. This way, you have a decoy to keep things formal and the bosses under notice.

And trust me, your manager would have done his list of things he needs to see improved from you, so why not be prepared?

The Office Performance Review: Proof of Achievements

During the course of your work, you will receive some praises from your boss or the clients. In these mails, ensure that you share the good news with your boss and his boss as well. It is good to keep people apprised, especially the top ones who decide on what your pay hike is going to be. Not that your boss is going to be mean and ready to tackle you, but it does help to be prepared with proof.

The Office Performance Review: Documentation

Maintain all your mails, nothing speaks as strong as the records do for your performance. Maintain them in a separate folder for the express purpose of these performance reviews because it prevents the last minute fumbling to identify the good things that need to be talked about in your defence.

The Office Performance Review: Personal Boundary

I have noticed a horrible tendency with some bosses to give you some personal advice about the type of person you are. Be aware that the review is just about work and what affects the work. No one has the right to patronise you just because they are your boss. And if they do cross the boundary, then please remind them of it. The review is just to talk about your job and that is the extent of it, nothing more.

The Office Performance Review: Assertion

Sometimes as a part of our culture, we are taught that modesty is the best policy and we should let our achievements speak for themselves. In an ideal world, they most certainly will. But god forbid if you are in a place where your boss is not the most reasonable man on earth, then you need to be assertive. You cannot let someone treat you with lesser respect than you deserve.

The Office Performance Review: Control

This holds good for any negotiation you will encounter – the element of control. Usually it is the manager who holds the control of a review since you will be answerable to him. That again is just in theory, the protocol ensures that both the employee and the employer have an equal standing when it comes to the negotiation. Don’t let him the control because he decides the payout. You have every right to talk about what you think you deserve and you need to come up with sufficient proof for the same.

No company can ever survive by exploiting its employees and if you think that the performance review is going out of your hand and you need the help of an external counsel, consult your HR department. The current day world has no dearth of opportunities. For a skilled performer, the number of opportunities are vast and he has a better employability when he/she decides to move out. So don’t stand there and listen to all that nonsense they are selling you. Stand up for your rights and make your voice heard.

Above all, you should never go down without a proper fight, right?

Those were our top tips of the day. Do let us know your thoughts and we would love to debate them further. If there is a particular issue/situation with which you need our suggestion, please write to us at [email protected] and we shall get back to you at the earliest opportunity.