Performance Review Meetings – Common Ground for Constructive Feedback System

Performance is focused behavior or purposeful work (Rudman, 1998, p. 205)

Generally performance review meetings are depicted as fighting stage for manager and team member. In my experience, I found few thing which I like to share here. I am here to tell you how to make performance reviews more useful to the life and not how to conduct/attend a performance review activity. To me, argument on a disputed item is not wrong. But suddenly dispute arises at the end of year while discussing the performance. How come that could be possible? Main reason for these are:

* Manager and team member are not communicating well about the work performed regularly.

* Expectations set by manager are not clear or misunderstood.

* Wrong goal settings for the respective team member’s role.

* Not much work to perform. Keeping a person in bench for long time and telling he has not performed the activity for most of the review period.

* Both manager and team member doesn’t understand they are working for the project/organization and taking things personal.

* Manager lists only mistakes whereas team member points only work performed.

* Comparing team members – this is done by both manager and team member. Ex. Manager says ‘That guy is also same experience of yours but delivering more output’. Team member says – ‘That guy is also same grade as mine but you are giving more benefits to him but not to me’

* Politics between team member and manager – Ex. May be team member is an eligible candidate for Manager promotion but manager doesn’t want to promote him.

* At the extreme level, considering both of them are enemies in the battle ground. In this team member & manager never accepts each others’ comments and even throwing papers/slamming doors at the end/shouting in the loud voice happens.

Everyone, from top management till the lowest level employees, experience above mentioned point in their life every year or half yearly or quarterly based on their feedback review period. To be practical (I don’t want to use ‘Ideal’ which means ‘impossible’ in all our dictionaries!), performance review meetings are common ground for constructive feedback system. During these meetings manager and team member

* understands about each others expectations

* sets common goal to achieve to make the project successful in turn making each one involved in the project successful

* draws road map for the career goals and aspirations

* takes closer look at issues in hand and develop solutions to overcome

I started practicing above four points early on in my project management career and it is absolutely possible to do it. Try and tell me is it making any change in your teams growth.

Find how sensitive is your project against variables – Tornado Diagram

While analyzing project stability, it is important to come up with impact of a risk event quantitatively and determine which risk causes more damage (or benefit) to the project. Sensitivity charts are used to visualize impacts (best and worst outcome values) of different uncertain variables over their individual ranges. The sensitive variable is modeled as uncertain value while all other variables are held at baseline values (stable). Tornado diagram is a variance of the sensitivity charts where the variable with highest impact kept at the top of the chart followed by other variables in descending impact order which represents a Tornado.

Tornado diagram is applicable to wide range of project domains – Financial, Constructions, Software, Sales, Services, etc. Tornado diagram can be used for analyzing sensitivity in other project constraint (cost, time, quality and risk) objectives also.

 

References:

1. Constructing Tornado Diagram using spreadsheet – http://www.oup.com/us/pdf/engineeringecon/scan.pdf

Key Leadership Skill – Communication

Communication is the key skill for Leaders. Do you think you need a special stage or dais or forum to show you are a good communicator? No. Even communication between just two people will make you a good leader between you two.

Communication

Let us understand the events that happens when two people communicate or exchange information:

* Each one tries to show their proficiency on the topic they are presenting/discussing
* Each one may have different views on same issue or topic
* Each one tries to influence other to agree with their view
* There could be mutual agreement on the conclusion
* At the end, even there is no mutual agreement, surely one get influenced by others’ opinion in one or other way
* We never know who or how much we influence

*Reflection of the influence is not immediate or straight forward. But we will show it on some other day in different ways

Consider each communication opportunity as opportunity to show your leadership ability. By doing so, you will be placing yourself well in the your leadership path.

Project Selection Methods – An Overview

Projects are undertaken for various reasons. Each project should have clear justification and methods defined to show its ‘worth’ taking it. Strategic goals of organization, Market Need, Technological Advancement, Competitive Advantage, Profitability, Project/Portfolio Management Office (PMO), Sponsors are key in project selection.

Below I presented the gist of few widely-used project selection methods. Decisions are made based on the best information in hand about a particular project at a given point of time. One can use either Benefit Measurement Methods(Comparative approach) or Constrained Optimization Methods (Mathematical approach) or both to arrive conclusion on project selection.Out of these two benefit measurement method is most commonly used.

Benefit measurement methods are based on measuring the benefits in taking up the project and comparing the results against other projects or a strategy benchmark. Cost-Benefit Analysis, Scoring Models, Economic Models, Discounted Cash Flow(DCF), Net Present Value (NPV), Internal Rate of Return are different types under Benefit measurement methods.

Constrained optimization methods uses complex mathematical calculation based on different worst/best case scenarios and probability of outcome and then selecting project on best results. Generally known methods are Linear programming, nonlinear programming, multi objective programming.

Project Selection Methods

Let me explain about each of these methods in brief in a later post.

Four boats that leads to self-destruction

Leading oneself in the right path is more difficult task than advising others. Leadership starts with correcting one’s self image. ‘What we think about what we are’ has greater impact on everyday life. Behavior and character are mirror reflection of our inner mind. Here I like to present four pleasure boats that take you to worst side of the life. I like to term them as ‘pleasure’ boats as you will surely get addicted to them once you started practicing it.

Procrastination

1. Procrastination – Putting off critical stuff till it pinches you. Every author in Management especially Time Management surely deals with this topic. It is not a new topic but it is the vital topic. Procrastination has no excuse for it & most often it gives bad results. Some bloggers posted advantages of it too To-do list, prioritization, finishing up bigger task at first, quick wins, etc would be the ideas to beat procrastination. I found following text in one of the site:

I think the way to “solve” the problem of procrastination is to let delight pull you instead of making a to-do list push you. Work on an ambitious project you really enjoy, and sail as close to the wind as you can…[1]

2. Forgetfulness – Repeatedly missing appointments, blaming it on your memory, not following up a written schedule are all some examples. Don’t think it can happen only for elderly people! It happens to all. Stress, anxiety, or depression can make a person more forgetful. Keeping mind relaxed, write the activities to-do, review activity list in equal intervals will help you getting out of this dreadful boat.

3. Idleness (or Laziness) - To pass time without working or while avoiding work. When used to describe a person, idle typically carries a negative connotation, with the assumption that the person is wasting their time by doing nothing of value. Such a view is reflected in the proverb “an idle mind is the devil´s workshop”. We are here to live. Life is enjoyable when we do activities of our interest or activities that bring happiness to others. So don’t get into something and be useful.

4. Fond of sleep – This is the fourth boat of self-destruction. Sleep is good only to some extent. Sleep gives refreshment to mind and body. But it turns to be ugly when sleep becomes one’s work. If you give more importance to sleep, you will surely lose time. Loss of vital time lead to unsuccessful life.

Can you think of a soldier sleeping in war front?

Can you think of a Police official sleeping in early hours of a day?

Can you think of a Country President/Manager/CEO sleeping in a press meeting?

Anyone who wants to reach greater heights in life & be successful should get out of bed and get into work. Take a oath from today – “As a leader of my life I don’t encourage myself addicting to above four things anytime in my life.”

Procrastination, forgetfulness, idleness, and sleep, these four things, form the vessel which is desired by those destined to destruction.[3]

References:

1. Good and Bad Procrastination, December 2005 retrieved from http://www.paulgraham.com/procrastination.html on 03/15/2009

2. Thirukkural (Tamil) by Thiruvalluvar

3. Thirukkural – English Translation and Commentary by Rev Dr G U Pope, Rev W H Drew, Rev John Lazarus and Mr F W Ellis First published by W.H. Allen, & Co, 1886, Reprinted by The South India Saiva Siddhantha Works Publishing Society, Tinnevelly, Madras, India , 1962, 1982.