Annual Reviews vs. Regular Reviews, Which Is Best?

Recently I read an article on CNBC.com about “Generation Z” as the upcoming new workforce. The article covers everything from workplace environment preferences, to communication styles, to global work travel, all regarding employee preferences. Not surprising was learning that Generation Z’ers prefer regular performance reviews as opposed to traditional annual reviews. This totally makes sense!

Read Full CNBC Article Here!

Lets put a little context around what constitutes an Annual Review and the up and coming Regularly Scheduled Reviews (RSR). The annual review is what most of us are used to, if you even had a company who conducted them. For most companies, this is how an annual review goes down:

• Segregated annual time of the fiscal year committed to conducting and completing all departmental employee reviews.
• This responsibility is put on direct managers of their teams. This could range from a couple of reviews to dozens maybe even a hundred or more. YIKES!
• Pre-created forms are provided to managers to complete on each employee, by the manager, prior to the meeting. Makes sense!
• The review will cover strengths, weaknesses, goal setting, maybe aspirations and for some unfortunate souls a write-up or P.I.P. (Performance Improvement Plan).
• Many companies accompany their reviews with small annual increases, so for the high rolling ballers they will get their 3%.
• Then everyone goes their separate ways and never speaks of performance again, unless the “you know what” hits the fan, for another year.
• It is easy to see the pros and cons of this approach. The pros are more practical and logistical and the cons will have a core focus on effectiveness.

So what does a RSR look like? How does it differ? Great question, glad you asked! The reality is that the primary difference is the frequency. However, due to the this one change these reviews do have a tendency to produce some outcomes that an annual review simply cannot compete with.

Here are a few top advantages to both employee and employer who conduct RSR’s:

• Finger on the Pulse
  • Simply put, the manager knows what is going on with their employee and the employee knows what the manager is thinking of them.
  • Not knowing, in anything, can create undue anxiety. An anxious employee is often an employee seeking a new job.
  • Arguably a clear bi-product of RSR’s is retention.
• Needs
  • Often asked in any review, by the manager, is “What do you need from me?”. In an annual review there may have been a need six months ago that was not given proper attention and now the time has passed. Deliberately asking this question more often will most definitely prove to be an effective proactive measure.
• Ideas
  • There is no telling how many ideas have been lost, left unspoken or simply forgotten due to someone not being in the right situation, for them, to discuss.  Most companies have weekly conference calls or meetings, but the idea of hashing out a raw idea in front of peers can be daunting to a lot of people. A RSR is a great place to discuss ideas with employees one on one and foster an environment for sharing while building confidence.
• More Detailed
  • Tell me everything you did last year. Now, tell me everything you did last month! Which do you think you will have greater success in detailing to me?
  • This is no great discovery, the fresher something in on an individual’s mind, the more accurate and voluminous the details will be.
• The Right Focus – The Whole Picture
  
  • This one is a little trickier, but I have seen this play out with a former colleague of mine. You have an employee, they have performed well all year but for the last eight weeks you have had some issues. Nothing worthy of termination, just a little attitude needing adjusting, maybe a customer complaint, some excessive overtime, etc. Keep in mind this employee has been stellar all year, but now it is review time.
    • Where do you think the manager will focus his or her review? The last eight weeks of course! Sure, you may say now while reading this that you would take the entire year into consideration, but this employee has really been testing your nerves for the last couple of months. Human nature would steer you towards the last 8 weeks!
  • RSR’s can help keep a manager focused on recent  successes, challenges and truly what is top of mind for all involved.
  • The conversation during the RSR will remain current and relevant whether positive or challenging.

There really are a lot of pros to regularly scheduled reviews, however, the most daunting roadblock will remain and that is time. Good ‘ol Father Time. As someone who has been in the Human Resources circle for a long time, this is always the greatest hurdle for Managers in completing their reviews.

In a world where we are so connected through email, social media, texting, mobility, remote access and more, we still have a tendency to be crucially disconnected. Managers, your greatest asset are your employees, your team, your peeps! You may not be able to commit to quarterly reviews, but maybe consider bi-annual to start and see how that works for you.

The benefits of the continual conversation, which is systemically what RSR’s offer, is probably the most valuable way to utilize time as a manager. Understand what makes a generation tick and hopefully that will result in a happy employee who sees their work as more than a job, but a career that requires their presence and expertise.