This is a really great article about performance reviews. The individual writing it talks about what not to do, and what you need to do in order to be a great manager. I’ve always said that the hardest part of my career was managing people….there is nothing harder. Difficult projects? Tough timeframes? Easy. Trying to manage groups of people without losing your mind? Not so easy.

So I agree knowing how to do performance reviews well is an important skill to have. But while those are pivotal moments in the year, how you manage people is actually evidenced by 100s of decisions you are making all year long. Did I try to be a good manager? Yes. Did I want to kill my people sometimes? Absolutely. So here are some of the rules I tried to absolutely not break.

1. The performance review should not be a surprise. Meaning, I’ve spoken to them about it before. I shouldn’t see an expression of shock…they might not be happy, but they should not be surprised. If they are, bad on me.
2. If there are other people who don’t report to me, but I think are awesome, I give the manager the feedback. Short and sweet, with a couple of bullet points stating why. I want the manager to feel that they can cut and paste it into their employee’s review.
3. I don’t do the “say something nice, say something mean, say something nice” approach. I like the format of here’s what I want you to keep doing, here’s what I want you to do less of, and here’s what you need to do to show you’re ready for the next level. When I start mixing things up, I think it confuses people.
4. If my boss is really bad at giving performance reviews, I turn it around and ask them what I should do more of/what should I do less of. I can’t remember the last time I walked out of a performance review and felt “wow, that was really insightful.” (Maybe I’m not listening though).
5. The reality is that you’ve had a relationship with the person all year…maybe multiple years. It’s a journey that both of you are going through together….and you get the responsibility to try and guide your employee like a sherpa on Mt Everest. They might not get to the top, but you need to make sure you’ve done everything you can to help them be successful….no matter how far they get.