With the downsizing and restructuring in today’s market, your job may have changed significantly. You may have more responsibility or completely different tasks added to your plate. So you want a review to make sure you’re on track to meet your goals (and to confirm what these goals are in this ever-changing market).
With the downsizing and restructuring in today’s market, your job may have changed significantly. You may have more responsibility or completely different tasks added to your plate. So you want a review to make sure you’re on track to meet your goals (and to confirm what these goals are in this ever-changing market). Some companies have regularly scheduled reviews, but some don’t. Furthermore, in this chaotic market, even regular reviews might get pushed off. It is important to ask for a performance review and use it to your advantage – as a chance to make adjustments in your approach, identify blind spots and figure out how you can contribute value-added to others.
Take time before responding. During the review by all means ask for clarification and get specific examples so you understand exactly what the reviewer is thinking. But don’t try to justify or respond to the feedback. You are getting someone else’s perspective. Even if you disagree, this is what they think. Take a step back and ask yourself: what have you done to contribute to this impression? Is this an accurate reflection of what you are trying to accomplish? If not, what might you change?
Help the reviewer help you improve. Coach the reviewer to hive you the feedback you need. Ask the reviewer what s/he might want differently? If there is a communication problem, how does s/he like to communicate – email or in-person, regularly or at project stopping points? If the reviewer feels like goals haven’t been achieved, confirm the goals AND the metrics used to measure the results. Maybe you are focusing on revenues and the reviewer cares about customer satisfaction. Maybe you think your clients just want the best price but they want more access to you.
Define a concrete action plan. Schedule a meeting for after the review (so you have time to prepare) and confirm an action plan going forward. Feedback is only useful if it’s used. How do you want the next six months to differ from the first six? What one goal would add the most value now and take priority in the short term? What can you do to ensure that the next review is a positive one?
If you think the review is completely wrong or the review process is unfair, this may mean looking for a new job that is a better fit. In that case, even a negative review is a benefit if it brings you closer to your ideal situation.
Is Your Job Search Flexible or Just Unfocused?
As a recruiter, I’ve seen lack of flexibility on the recruiting side with employers clinging to every last detail in their ideal spec while perfectly good candidates get overlooked. As a career coach, I see jobseekers prematurely dismissing possible targets waiting for that perfect job. It’s true that you want to be focused in your job search (otherwise you dilute your efforts and come across as scattered and possibly desperate).
5 Questions to Test If Your Resume Is Recruiter-Proof
After recruiting in search and in-house for over ten years, I have read thousands of resumes. Due to sheer volume of resumes received and all the other things that vie for the recruiter’s attention in the hiring process – scheduling, interviewing, networking, reference checks, client debriefs, and more – the resume review process is ruthlessly quick.
Why Conventional Wisdom On Work Flexibility Is Always Wrong
In a previous post, I wrote about why employment statistics are always wrong. In a similar way, conventional wisdom on work flexibility is always wrong. It is impossible to generalize something that is inherently case-by-individual case. Therefore, any boilerplate advice or conventional wisdom is bound to omit a key consideration, underweight or overemphasize other considerations, or take too long-term or short-term of a view.
