The Simple Quarterly Performance Review

The vast majority of managers have to prepare, write and deliver annual performance reviews. We have extensive guidance on the entire process that has been downloaded so many times they are now in our Hall of Fame category.

Most managers think that performance reviews are their most significant contribution to performance management and improvement. But that’s wrong. Frequent feedback is the greatest tool we managers have to improve performance. In fact, performance reviews aren’t even really part of the performance improvement efforts managers engage in. Performance reviews are an organizational system that is primarily designed to help the organization manage succession planning.

What this means is we managers need a system to connect regular feedback to annual reviews. THAT system is the quarterly performance review.

Very few managers give enough regular feedback. That’s important because feedback is the single most important tool managers have to improve performance. (Remember, when we say feedback we mean both positive and negative feedback - and ideally at a ratio of 9 positive to every 1 negative).

Part of the reason managers do that is because they mistakenly believe that performance reviews are their big contribution to performance management. But annual performance reviews happen too rarely to make a difference. Performance is behavior, and behavior is daily. Nevertheless we need a tool to connect regular feedback with annual reviews. THAT tool is the Quarterly Performance Review.