During a year-end review, a manager is expected to examine an employee’s performance over the past 365 days. That’s quite a long time. How can a manager remember every little thing that happened?

The manager might recall one or two of the employee’s accomplishments, if the employee is lucky. Or, the supervisor could only focus on what the employee did wrong (which could have been a single event). In that case, anything positive the employee did would be overshadowed by his or her mistakes.

Part of the reason so many people think annual employee reviews take up more time than necessary is because it seems impossible to examine an employee’s performance over the course of an entire year, in the allotted time span of 20 or 30 minutes.

If you hold frequent performance reviews, you won’t have that problem. They could take place on a monthly basis, or even every two weeks. Aside from saving time, frequent performance reviews means that the manager is up to date with what’s going on.

Another reason employees and managers find performance reviews to be a waste of time is because they lack meaning. No one seems to understand their purpose, and there’s no concrete evidence that they improve employee performance.

How can managers make employee reviews matter? They should explain why the employee is being evaluated and what the criteria are that the manager uses. Moreover, managers should emphasize that if the employee doesn’t take the feedback to heart, there will be consequences.

Yet another reason many people consider employee reviews a “time sink” is because they believe they’re a distraction from getting work done. However, they don’t realize that the review process is part of their jobs.

It’s the manager’s job to evaluate employees and provide them with feedback. If necessary, the supervisor should provide coaching and mentoring skills. When everyone understands that employee evaluations are a manager’s duty, they’ll stop regarding them as a waste of time.

Always make sure that your employee reviews are holistic, clear, and take into consideration the fact that your employees are human. If you find that your current review tools don’t allow you to ask the right questions, then maybe it’s time to consider 360 degree feedback. Contact us today for a live demo to learn more!