Tuesday 26 February 2008

Appraisals are dead; just not buried yet

I have been in the United Kingdom for the past two weeks and have been surprised at the amount of media concerning performance appraisals. The latest was in yesterdays Sunday Times with the sub headline reading “Managers need to be trained better in carrying out annual staff performance reviews …” The article went on to quote a recent survey by Investors in People which found that a third of employees think appraisals are a waste of time.

To leave a performance review for a year in the modern world is poor practice. Every 90 days is the norm for remarkable organisations where the key is the informal feedback exchange that occurs daily, meaning the formal review is about celebrating performance and agreeing on the performance plan for the next 90 days.

Human beings do not want to be appraised; they want to be appreciated. People also want to be held to account when performance is less than planned. To leave appreciation or being held to account for a year is an insult to humanity. It is not training that is required for managers in how to complete annual reviews that is needed rather a complete relearning about the essentials of effective leadership and management.

Find out more about best practice by downloading a free special report on people engagement here

Be remarkable
Ian
Insightpreneur™ - insight-inspiration-ideas-innovation

Thursday 14 February 2008

We treat other people the same at our peril

We treat people the same at our peril, for everyone is different.

I was raised under the banner of the Golden Rule “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." I learnt from experience that living this rule wasn’t always the best strategy as it often led to outcomes I wasn’t happy with, and, just as often, other people weren’t happy with either.

I was pleased to learn The Platinum Rule® created by Dr Tony Alessandra in 1974.
This rule says “Do Unto Others As They Would Have You Do Unto Them” or "Treat others the way they want to be treated." Living this rule has made a huge difference for me and has helped me immensely to better serve others.

Which rule are you living by?

Be remarkable
Ian
Insightpreneur™ - insight-inspiration-ideas-innovation

Thursday 7 February 2008

Rest, Work, Play

I spent much of the last part of January resting and playing and reminded myself that I do my best work when I rest properly before work and play after work. I also reminded myself that too much work does indeed make us all dull.

How would you rate your ability and willingness to maintain harmony between rest, work, and play? We need to get this right for us if we are to be remarkable and therefore able to play our part in building our new world.

Be remarkable
Ian
Insightpreneur™ - insight-inspiration-ideas-innovation