23
A
g
& F
ood
E
mployer
G
uide
“Reiterate areas of
continued improvement,
acknowledgment of
improvements, celebration
of successes, and discussion
about growth.”
supervisor’s responsibility. Hopefully
your manager has been provided with
some training to enhance the experience,
but here are a few things that you can do
to help guide the discussion for the most
effective experience possible.
•
Plan a designated time to connect.
Schedule a time for the discussion
allowing both you and your supervisor
time to plan and reflect on the time
frame being evaluated. Suggest a quiet
meeting place or somewhere off site
that will allow for conversation with little
interruption.
•
Be prepared to listen. Truly listen
to what your supervisor has to say
and don’t be defensive to constructive
feedback. Focus on what they are saying
rather than thinking through your
rebuttal. Be aware of your body
language. Is it giving the impression that
you are open to feedback?
•
Ask for examples. If you aren’t sure
what is meant by feedback or don’t agree,
ask for specific examples that will help
you identify with the information being
shared.
•
Talk about accomplishments. Don’t
be afraid to share your accomplishments
and the things you feel good about.
Particularly if you hope to climb the
career ladder, this is the time to shine
and gloat a little about what you’ve done.
•
Ask about next career steps. If you
aspire to move up the career ladder or
grow within your current role, ask your
supervisor what is next? Ask for
opportunities for training and
additional education and then
brainstorm with your supervisor what
those might be.
•
Use the time to write or re-evaluate
goals. Working on goals together with
your supervisor eliminates a lot of back
and forth. Ask about how you’ll be
measured (if it is your first time) or if
anything has changed with the evaluation
process.
•
Set the stage to provide feedback.
Conclude the conversation by asking if
there is any additional feedback for
you. Obviously, this is a sincere
question and you’ll want to listen to the
feedback, but hopefully it opens the door
for your manager to ask for feedback as
well. Again, hopefully none of what you
share will come as a surprise and will be
delivered in a constructive manner. An
example: ‘Awhile back we talked about
some of your directions being vague.
Last month when you instructed me on
vaccinating it was very clear, but recently
when you asked me to power wash I had
to ask a lot of follow-up questions to
fully understand your expectations. Can
we talk about that?’
#2
Meet more frequently. If a process
exists but is sporadic or not frequent
enough, make the suggestion for more
scheduled connects. Many organizations
meet at the six month mark and also
annually. More conscious and frequent
interactions make examples shared more
easily recalled and relevant.
#3
Create goals. If this is not part of the
process, take it upon yourself to write
measurable and timely goals that you feel
align with the business and then share
those with your supervisor for
discussion and approval.
#4
Rate yourself. If an evaluation matrix
exists, ask for a copy in advance and rate
yourself. Then compare and contrast
your areas of similarity and
differences with your supervisor to help
spark discussion.
#5
Address problems as they arise. Don’t
let things fester and lead to a big
blow-up. Talk about how things can be
done differently next time right away.
#6
Ask a question. The best way to
resolve a sticky situation is to ask a
question. Example: Is there something
we can put into place to be more
cohesive about my objectives and out-
comes?
#7
Simply ask for a performance review.
Most managers when asked will make
the time and effort, you might just have
to ask!
Performance management and
performance reviews get a bad rap. In
all reality, there is so much to be gained
for employees that utilize and look for
opportunities to make performance
management the positive experience that
it should be. Rather than the dreaded
performance review, maybe the mindset
should be, “Yes, an opportunity to
continue to grow my career!”
WHAT TO DO IF THERE IS NO
PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT
Perhaps you aren’t one of the lucky ones
and your organization doesn’t have a
performance management process or
the process isn’t being taken seriously
by your supervisor. Take the reins and
create an opportunity for yourself with
this list of seven ideas!
#1
Ask your supervisor upfront how
they will measure success. Note this and
keep in sight on your desk. Throughout
the year write down both positives and
negatives as it relates to your goals and
this measurement.
