Sometimes people can become disillusioned with their appraisal system and rather than looking forward to what should be a positive, helpful experience, the opposite can happen.
The aim of this brainstorming exercise is to dispel unclear, anxious, or perhaps even cynical emotions about performance appraisal discussions.
This is a participative exercise for you and a group (e.g. a team that you manage) to redefine what you want from your discussions. Participants will focus on their positive experiences of appraisal systems to understand the benefits and the purpose of such systems.
Learning Objectives
Participants will be able to…
• describe the purpose of objective-setting and development planning
• list the positive outcomes of these discussions and how they will benefit the organisation, team and themselves personally
Preparation
Consider your own appraisal experiences, both as an appraiser and appraisee. Use these as stories to illustrate good practice you want to emulate and practices you want to avoid.
Be clear about the values you want to reinforce and the key messages you want to leave with your team.
You might want to refer to the slides that summarise some of the benefits.
Suggested Resources
• flip chart and pens
• PowerPoint slides (click the button above to download them)
What to Do
• This is a really simple exercise. All that is required is to explain the aim and learning objectives.
• Ask participants to consider the benefits of a performance management system from three different perspectives (benefits) to:
• you, the employee
• your manager/team
• your organisation
• If you have a small team, you might want to brainstorm the various angles together. Make use of a flipchart to list the various benefits under the three headings: you, the employee; your manager/team; your organisation.
• If you have a larger group, you could split it into three smaller groups, each looking at a different perspective. Allocate 10 minutes for discussions in their subgroups.
Review Activity
Ask one person from each group to present their flipchart to the main group. Allow a couple of minutes for each group and encourage the cross-flow of ideas.
Apply Learning
Reaffirm the benefits, using the PowerPoint slides (available by clicking the button above), stories from your past and/or simply highlighting the key points they have raised in their flipcharts.
Encourage your group to look forward to these meetings. The overall message you may want to leave them with is this:
We should look forward to these meetings. They are a rare opportunity to sit down uninterrupted for an hour or so, sharing ideas about:
• the direction of your whole job
• your strengths and how they could be best utilised
• your career aspirations and personal development
• and how we can work together effectively
You might want to reinforce these values in an email to your group if you are attaching preparation checklists.
#perfomancemanagement #emotionalintelligence #socialintelligence #communication #relationshipmanagement
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