Meaningful Performance Evaluations

I was sitting at my desk reading the performance review that I just received from my boss…

He was in the habit of pulling them together at the last minute and emailing them about an hour before the formal review…

I could not believe what I was reading!

To say that it cut me to the very core of my being would have been an understatement!

“You look crushed!” A familiar voice said from the doorway!

I looked up and told him that I was…

Without asking…as he normally did…he entered and sat down!

Today he was different…he didn’t ask questions…in fact…he didn’t say a word!

I tried to understand the reason behind his presence…he was here for consolation…or perhaps soul searching and a few lessons learned! I found the latter to be true!

Finally the silence was broken…

I gather that your boss didn’t recognize your outstanding accomplishments and achievements?

He missed the boat completely didn’t he?

“I can empathize with you.” He consoled.

I responded like a rabid dog…”You told me that your evaluation went exactly as you expected and that everything was dead-on…HOW CAN YOU RELATE?”

“Let me go back,” He said, “He missed the boat completely, didn’t he?”

I didn’t even answer! He knew that he was right and I did not have to confirm that!

Whose right? Him? You?

“If I step back…and look at it rationally…we both are!” I responded

“No!” He said…”There are very few situations in this world that has a single right and wrong…this is one of them…”

“You are right!” He smiled, “He just doesn’t know it!”

“Let me tell you…” He started…

Seldom did he ever tell me anything and I knew that this was going to be a gift! So I set aside the 10 pages of “bunk” sat back on listened!

Along this may sound like total managerial blasphemy…I want you to hear me out!

I am going to share 2 cardinal rules of performance evaluating with you…

1. Do not EVER give the boss the right to evaluate your performance!

2. Do not EVER take the right to evaluate your team’s performance!

Because of the way you look…I am going to focus on the first tenant and the second one will be addressed in due course…

BUT…before I begin talking…I want to share with you that EVERY ONE of your team had the same look on their faces as you did when you sent them their evaluations!

I started to open my mouth to respond in disbelief…and he immediately told me to stop and listen!

Your boss does not have the right to evaluate your performance…unless…you give that to him!

Most people are too stupid or lazy to realize that!

The only right that your boss has is to agree or disagree with you!

Your performance is yours and yours alone...

Do you realize that…?

I nodded in agreement…but it was a jump for me…because I too had been brainwashed by traditional management theories such as MBO…

You have something in your possession that will change the entire face of your evaluation…do you realize that?

I shook my head…I had no idea of what he was taking about…

Your notebook!

The light went on!

Yet he went on to confirm it!

Every time he gave you an assignment…you wrote down his expectations…I thought that was brilliant and began doing that my self!

You have a chronicle of exactly what he expected from you over the past year don’t you?
AND you know exactly how you did in relation to each of those expectations…right?

Perhaps you should make a list of everything that he assigned to you and ask him if he missed anything…

Then when that list is agreed upon…send him another column that lists what he told you he expected…

Then when that list is agreed upon…send him a list of how you performed in relation to those expectations…

Then when that list is agreed upon…send him your assessment of the expectations versus actual…

OR…

You could just leave it up to him to remember all that stuff…and gamble that you are at the top of his list!

He smiled and walked out…he knew that my evaluation was in 5 minutes and that my definition for being at a meeting on-time was 5 minutes early!

I walked down the hallway and just before I turned the corner...I looked back and he was standing in the doorway of his office...smiling...I smiled back...took a deep breath...and...

"Come on in Phil…I see you have your notebook…no assignments today…its all about you and last year’s performance…let me see…you had a pretty good year…wouldn’t you agree?"

I smiled and said…”Boss…we have a few weeks before the final reviews are due…what would you think if we stepped back and really worked this through?” “Rather than spending an hour today…let’s just take a few minutes and look at what I was assigned and make sure that we have captured everything that mattered! “Besides…I have 12 impromptu "one on ones" that I just came up! ”