A performance management system that does not focus on employee development and success is unlikely to succeed.
Too often, we see mental and emotional barriers of employee distrust, fear, and even antipathy toward annual reviews or other traditional performance management approaches. These must be broken down before any progress can be made.
More regular, informal conversations can engage employees more meaningfully in real time than an annual performance review, and neuroscience provides an effective framework for addressing these conversations.
The ‘social and cognitive needs’
Research from the University of California and the University of Queensland has identified six social and cognitive needs common to all individuals. The call RELIEF The model outlines these needs and creates the foundation for more effective performance conversations:
Relationship
Humans have evolved to be part of a group and to feel that this group is cohesive, fair, and safe. Leaders need to clarify their own role in the conversation, the role of the employee, and the purpose of the discussion, to help people feel respected, valued, and trusted.
Expression
Most professionals are taught NOT to express their emotions, so they tend to mask them; but repressed emotions have a nasty habit of taking over. Leaders should encourage the “labeling” of emotions to lessen their intensity and impact, creating a more constructive environment for two-way feedback.
leading the pack
Status, recognition, and independence are long-term motivators for performance. Employees need to feel personally successful. Leaders must set achievable goals, objectives or KPIs, recognize individual aspirations and motivations and try to align them with team goals.
interpersonal connection
Our brains need to feel understood, supported, and connected to others on a personal level. Leaders need to listen and empathize with the people they are talking to rather than just dictating the conversation. No one can receive AND give feedback at the same time.
watching the progress
People need to feel that they can make sense of the world and that they are making progress toward their goals. Leaders must demonstrate how employees can clearly track progress toward agreed goals or KPIs to maintain motivation.
hope for the future
Once people understand the team and what is expected of them, they need to know where they are going. Leaders must communicate what the next steps are; when is the next meeting and why; and where things are headed for both the individual and the organization as a whole.
Meaningful and effective performance conversations depend on leaders meeting all of the above needs; This will result in more open communication channels and more opportunities to spark the kinds of conversations that will improve motivation, create more cohesive teams, and ultimately lead to better performance.
This may mean a change in the way managers approach their work. Plus controls, measurements, metrics, matrices or compliance it will only alienate more of the workforce, create more power struggles, and promote unhealthy competition.
Ongoing, collaborative, development-focused conversations are the result of first addressing the building blocks of human behavior.
