Although most of us face the prospect of a mid-year performance review with a mixture of dread and terror, it doesn’t have to be a negative experience. In fact, it could be a meeting that actually benefits your career, if you handle it in the right way and say the right things.
Here are some things to focus on in your next performance review:
Your recent achievements
Obviously, a performance review is a great time for you to sell yourself and highlight any wins you’ve been responsible for in the past six months.
Your manager won’t be across everything you do every day – so this is a good opportunity to bring up any targets you’ve met, projects you’ve successfully put to bed, and even any positive feedback you’ve received from clients or customers.
Any under-utilized skills you have
Your manager’s not a mind-reader and it may have been years since they last checked out your CV – so if you have some under-used skills which could benefit the business, speak up!
For example, maybe you’re a hospitality manager who’d has ideas for raising engagement on the restaurant or café’s social media channels – and you’re the only one who has social media skills. Putting yourself forward could mean you get to incorporate a bit of digital marketing into your role, gain valuable experience and build on skills for future jobs.
What you like / dislike about your job
The mid-year performance review is a time to be really honest about your job description. Are there aspects to your job that you really enjoy, and would like to be doing more of? Similarly, are you taking on tasks that have fallen to you but were never part of your job description? For long-term employees, a job and the tasks involved can evolve and change every year, so it’s worth letting your manager know what’s happening in your role, what you’d like to tweak or change. Always approach it from the angle of workshopping a solution.
Offer feedback on improved processes
A mid-year performance review isn’t just about you – it’s also a chance to let management know how they’re doing, too. Definitely mention what you think is working well before diplomatically bringing up what could be better. For example, are their systems up to scratch? Is there room for improvement with department processes?
When presenting a problem in a performance review, always follow up with a solution so you don’t sound like you’re just having a whinge, but rather you’re invested in working for a company that values efficiency and doing things well.
Talk about your career goals
It may come up naturally but it’s good to be prepared with the discussion of where you see your career going, your goals for the future and perhaps even where you hope to be in five years’ time. A good manager who’s invested in staff retention will want to hear your career goals to see if there’s a way they can help you meet them.
Talk about tools and training
If you need specific tools to do your job better, a mid-year performance review is the ideal time to raise it – it might be a piece of software, or a particular service that you know would improve your productivity or help you do things faster.
Similarly, if you’re keen to refresh your skills or undertake new training, talk to your manager about the development options available to you – it’ll benefit both the company and help future-proof your own career.
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