Data get everyone on the same page. Having a clear view and understanding of what is being measured keeps everyone focused on what is important. The data include the usual metrics that measure each employee's output and productivity which are set relative to each job and customized as appropriate. Data on behaviors are also collected. (Remember, results and behaviors.) Some of these are common across the entire organization, e.g., cultural and values norms, and some may pertain to specific employee development. Having some common items across the organization allows the leadership to very effectively steer the whole organization.
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Having a clear view and understanding of what is being measured keeps everyone focused on what is important.
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At the heart of this process is a conversation between the manager and employee. This is where the management rubber meets the road, the regular opportunity the manager has to guide and develop each employee. The discussion is focused on a very small number of goals that account for the bulk of the employee's results. Getting feedback more often is something that employees prefer (especially those millennials), plus it allows them to develop more quickly. A dialogue is more conducive to an employee's understanding of their role and effect in the organization. Since the structure of these conversations is consistent throughout the organization. each employee has a similar experience and expectations as they progress through their career.
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...conversation between the manager and employee - this is where the rubber meets the road...
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The first direction is the big picture - where the organization is headed. The military uses the phrase "Commander's Intent" which means that everyone knows what to do even if they're on their own. When each employee knows how their individual work furthers the goals of the organization, then they can be more productive, responsive, attentive and innovative.
The second direction is specific guidance for the employee - directing them to do certain things. Excellent managers are very good at giving very concise, specific guidance to their employees. They precisely identify a particular action, draw the employee's attention to it and say exactly what to do regarding it. Do it more, stop doing it, or whatever the case may be. They focus on what's most important regarding both the output (results) and actions (behaviors). This is much easier once the data have been established.
Employee Self-Assessments
Self-assessments are worse than useless - they're counterproductive. Just to be clear, we're talking about the employee's opinion of their own ability, not them reporting some objective data on what they accomplished. For the purpose of a performance review, the employee's impression of how good they are is irrelevant - only the manager's matters. In addition, if you let the employee begin with a self-assessment of their abilities, then you have to fight through the Dunning-Kruger effect, which is a cognitive bias wherein people mistakenly assess their ability to be much higher than is accurate. (It's why 85% of people claim to be above average drivers.)
It takes a significant investment to create the right performance management system, mostly in the time and attention of the organization's leaders and managers. The payoff is a huge impact in productivity, efficiency and strategic responsiveness.
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