Lessons In Writing Effective Performance Evaluations That You Should Never Forget.

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Lessons In Writing Effective Performance Evaluations That You Should Never Forget.

Adam Naor

Writer @ WFHAdviser.com, a site that helps remote workers thrive at home. Previously: Chrome & Maps @ Google.

This article is intended for two audiences: people who need to write self-evaluations, and people who need to provide feedback to their colleagues.

For the purpose of this article I provide specific examples of how to recognize and quantify impact. I hope you can leverage these concepts to write more holistic and thoughtful feedback for your peers.

Key Work From Home Skill: Show Impact by Being Goal Oriented

Here is a list of behaviors tied to impact that you will want to demonstrate (if you are working from home) or that you should evaluate if managing a remote workforce.

1. Completes assignments correctly and on time. Aware of details. Responds effectively to clear direction and follows set procedures.
2. Capable of addressing a wide variety of problems and managing unexpected circumstances.
3. Sees underlying principles, patterns, or themes in an array of related information.

Sample Feedback -  Junior Staff

Jennifer assumes full care of procedures, obligations, and activities. She gives prompt answers to inquiries and solves urgent issues, escalating where possible.

Jennifer meets deadlines regularly and yields good results. She also performs well and maintains a positive attitude under pressure.

Jennifer fosters a culture of speed and simplicity on her team and amongst stakeholders (both internal and external) and aligns vision with clear, stretching goals for team members.

She is a respected remote member of the team. She thinks creatively and out of the box and gives guidance to her peers and colleagues that can bring out the best results for our team.

Sample Feedback - Mid-Career Staff

Jennifer completes individual tasks with little or no follow-up and consistently prioritizes tasks through to completion. She regularly exhibits strategic foresight and develops strategic strategy around key objectives.

She leads successfully (both with and without authority) and inspires other stakeholders to do the same.

Jennifer remains versatile by taking into consideration conflicting interests and business objectives, and makes choices on which goals should be prioritized.

Sample Feedback - Senior Member of Team

Jennifer articulates a long-term strategic vision of what our business looks like in terms of global influence and leverages the necessary tools at her disposal for success.

She works successfully and delegates thoughtfully. She ensures that all team members contribute to our goals. She offers advice and instruction on how to handle conflicting interests and priorities.

I have worked with Jennifer for one year and seen her manage her team and resources effectively to deliver results on assignments.

Sample Feedback - Executive

Jennifer is a strong executive. She brings important positive improvements to our company in structure, culture, and organization.

Through her ventures and programs, she generates global influence, and organizational progress that leads to greater profits and impact in the market.

She expresses goals clearly to ensure that the right things are achieved and shows support for long-term strategic projects, successful investments, and supporting members of her team.

Key Work From Home Skill: Show Expertise by Using the Right Skills for the Right Task at the Right Time

Here is a list of behaviors tied to showing expertise that you will want to demonstrate (if you are working from home) or that you should evaluate if managing a remote workforce.

1. Capable of addressing a wide variety of problems and managing unexpected circumstances.
2. Sees fundamental concepts, trends, or themes in a variety of relevant material.
3. Builds rapports by listening to, discussing, and negotiating with internal and external stakeholders.
4. Find ways to collaborate on their projects and career development, and benefit from other perspectives.

Sample Feedback - Junior Staff

John has knowledge and experience that helps his team. He handles operations efficiently with little guidance. He shows a strong ability to think objectively for himself and for our company. He shows critical thought, putting together insight, knowledge and perspective while making decisions or generating results.

He knows how to use various tools, resources and relationships to improve our operations. For example, he builds a long list of target opportunities and is exhaustive in his approach. his efforts lead to more demand for our products and help our sales and revenue accelerate.

John selects suitable methodologies and approaches based on his good judgement and analytical skills and applies methods in his field of expertise to innovate. He frequently suggests new ways to solve challenges. This is valued by the team.

He is an emerging leader, and has shown signs of influencing the team from his work to adopt emerging best practices.

Sample Feedback - Mid-Career Staff

John recognizes the central function of our business, and is able to manage conversations independently and create supporting resources to convey the importance of operating in the market for our organization.

He constantly aims to maximize the efficiency of the deals / projects / products being launched, as described by key results he tracks.

John ensures that all people interested in a project or endeavor are kept informed about changes and plans and concerns. Others' ideas are incorporated and answered without compromising relationships.

He is a team leader. He operates from evidence and data and a deep knowledge base and remains open to innovative strategies for resolving needs or solving problems.

John is a compassionate and thoughtful leader who sets clear and actionable targets and works with his colleagues to achieve goals, build pipeline, and create new business strategies.

Sample Feedback - Senior Member of Team

John has an open mind that everybody appreciates. He seeks feedback from others, both from within our team and from the outside. He knows how to develop an end to end business model and proposal independently which leads to stakeholder satisfaction and customers approval.

This was clearly illustrated in the last deal / project / product in which John was involved, as he handled objections effectively. His peers were left satisfied, and so were our clients.

Considered as a subject matter expert and trusted advisor by clients and internal teams, John has an expertise in leading negotiation discussions and internal meetings which explain the work and vision of our team. John explicitly encourages and persuades others to follow and accomplish goals, and to accept new positions or views.

John has a warm and open approach to communication. He is open and energetic, a deep thinker, and passionate. I find my interactions with him both inspiring and motivating.

He always shows a bias towards action and a willingness to roll up his sleeves to jump into meaningful conversations. His attitude and approach reflect favorably on our organization and how he handles herself has contributed tremendously to our team’s culture.

John is an emerging executive. He integrates executive direction into every decision and consultation. He advocates for and positively represents other programs and services when working with stakeholders and is skilled at attracting and retaining talent to our team.

Sample Feedback - Executive

John leads the team to produce results expertly, while offering a scale-enabling structure and operation. He helps team leaders prioritize work and business opportunities, and offers constructive coaching without micromanaging team members.

John knows how to create a business that's best in class, right for our market. By leading and empowering our company and business unit effectively, John creates major business effects. He is experienced in shaping opinions across levels, both internally and externally, and is competent in handling career growth opportunities for team members.

John is a successful executive because, when appropriate, he intervenes to eliminate roadblocks at all levels of the company, both internally and externally. He exhibits strategic leadership, and is frequently active in initiatives and discussions that drive value beyond his core functional field for our business.

Key Work From Home Skill: Leadership

Here is a list of behaviors that leaders demonstrate and that you will want to emulate (if you are working from home) or that you should evaluate if managing a remote workforce.

1. Lead individuals or programs to achieve desired outcomes and long-term goals
2. Communicate by listening to, discussing, and negotiating with colleagues at all levels.

Sample Feedback - Junior Staff

Sarah explores opportunities for cooperation and learning from other viewpoints on both her core work and in the advancement of her career.

Sarah sets simple, important, demanding, and attainable goals and has aspirations that fit with the organization's objectives.

She makes suggestions that enhance quality and productivity for the team.

Sample Feedback - Mid-Career Staff

Sarah conveys confidence. She demonstrates the capacity to triumph over obstacles to achieve her goals. She encourages and persuades others to seek and accomplish objectives, and takes on new positions or views where appropriate.

In designing practical strategies for achieving goals, she combines other people's ideas and desires, and gets more senior stakeholder recognition and support for those strategies.

Sarah sees the potential in others and takes opportunities to apply and develop that potential.

Sample Feedback - Senior Member of Team

Sarah discovers and develops other influential leaders within the organization, guiding her team's growth and culture.

She interacts and collaborates well with different stakeholders in the business and industry. She connects mission, vision, principles, priorities and tactics to the team's day-to-day work and gets buy-in from other senior stakeholders.

Sample Feedback - Executive

Sarah builds relationships with internal and external leaders to allow business opportunities to come forward, naturally and at accelerated timelines.

She knows the costs and profits of her business unit and promotes talent from within to help improve core operating metrics.

She is a consummate strategist and leads several teams, directly and indirectly managed by other managers.

Conclusion

When evaluating remote staff use the above guidance to think holistically about how these workers are adding value relative to their experience and position.

These sample pieces of feedback can be used to showcase how a remote worker adds value to your clients, your firm, and your culture.

Thanks for reading. I am following the key learnings outlined here to launch a Work From Home venture that makes working from home more enjoyable and productive for all: Work From Home Adviser. If you’re interested in connecting you can reach me there.