There is a long way separating a top performer and an employee whose performance is unsatisfactory. Your staff should not be surprised by what they hear from you when you meet for an annual review. Expectations need to be clear and agreed in advance. The staff should know at any given moment what you expect them to do and how you expect them to do it. They must be sure about what it takes in order to improve in whatever their tasks and roles are. Moreover, these expectations should be revised and updated several times during the year. Don’t be afraid to do this: the more feedback you give about uncomfortable issues, the easier each session will get. This is according to the management.about.com website.
How to achieve that level of awareness?
You need to be giving feedback constantly. Remind your employees throughout the year when they fail to meet the criteria you have set and agreed on. The annual review should never come as a shock: both you and the employee concerned should have a pretty clear idea concerning what you are going to talk about.
Focus on the task, not on the person
You should provide examples of expectations not being met. Don’t be too personal but don't talk too generally either. Give specific examples of inappropriate behaviour. It has to be relevant to the role and job of the employee and it has to be very specific. So let’s be specific and relevant here as well: you might, for example, raise the issue of how interrupting others at team meetings makes it difficult or even impossible to gather input from every member of the team.
Discuss and document expectations
There will be a need to update what you agreed on in the first place. Always document what you have set as a goal, especially if it concerns tough issues. Schedule dates to meet in person and clarify mutual expectations. It must be planned ahead because only then will there be no awkward feelings or unnecessary stress involved.
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