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5 ways to put learning at the center of performance reviews
A guide to transform managers into learning champions and develop high-performing teams
Let's talk about performance reviews
Performance reviews are a hot topic amongst managers, employees, and executives alike, unfortunately, they remain widely unpopular.
When done well, performance reviews go beyond a standard performance appraisal of strengths and areas of development. They can offer an opportunity to strengthen manager and employee relationships, enhance performance, and provide employees a path to learn and grow.
Discover how you can put learning at the center of performance reviews to drive higher employee performance while transforming managers into learning champions.
5 ways to put learning at the center of performance reviews
A guide to transform managers into learning champions and develop high-performing teams
Deliver learning-centric performance reviews
Performance reviews are more about the 'how' than the 'what'.
Give managers the information that they need to make performance reviews an opportunity to strengthen their management skills and create a valuable experience for team members.
Learn more on LinkedIn Learning
Conducting performance reviews
Dr. Todd Dewett discusses how to create an impactful written and in-person performance review.
Giving and receiving feedback
Gemma Leigh Roberts shows how to give effective feedback and how to receive it with a growth mindset.
42% of managers globally agree that the #1 way they find out about learning resources available to them and their teams is when they are integrated into performance reviews.
- LinkedIn Learning Survey, September 2019
Top tips
Take your time
Often, managers are evaluating a full year of performance, so it's worth encouraging them to put in at least 2 hours to gather 360-degree feedback and thoughtfully craft a review that is positive, unbiased, and helpful.
No one likes surprises
Giving employees a chance to review the feedback a few days ahead of a performance review meeting helps them prepare, too.
Be prepared
Rescheduling performance reviews can send the wrong message. Managers should schedule the meeting a few weeks ahead, show up on time, and be ready for the conversation.
This isn't a negotiation
This is a review, not a negotiation. So, managers shouldn't get pulled into an unproductive discussion. Instead, encourage them to firmly pivot to the path forward.
"Effectively giving and receiving feedback are two sides of the same coin. When you understand what it takes to receive feedback well, you'll also master how to provide feedback effectively and vice versa."
- Gemma Leigh Roberts, Director, Resilience, Performance & Wellbeing Consultant, Kona Coaching
5 ways to put learning at the center of performance reviews
A guide to transform managers into learning champions and develop high-performing teams
Performance reviews as a coaching opportunity
Every great player needs a coach, especially during pivotal career moments.
At their best, performance reviews are not only an opportunity for managers to discuss performance, but they are also coaching opportunities to help their direct reports grow and develop.
Learn more on LinkedIn Learning
Coaching skills for leaders and managers
Leadership expert Sara Canaday gives you coaching models and skills to support employee development. (Free through 12/31/19)
Cornerstones of coaching
Leadership and negotiation coach Lisa Gates, as she explains how to establish a coaching relationship with direct reports.
"What's in it for those being coached? The obvious answer is the growth in their skills, but it's so much more than that. When employees are coached, they feel like their talent is being recognized and their potential is being respected. It's a huge motivator."
- Sara Canaday, Keynote Speaker, Consultant, and Author, Sara Canaday & Associates
Top tips
Ask powerful questions
Open-ended probing questions invite people to find clarity, new perspectives, and can trigger employees to generate new ideas and solutions.
Listen actively
When coaching an employee, managers should give them their full attention. By putting their phone on silent and closing their laptops, they are signaling that they are solely focused on their employees' success.
Give specific feedback
Providing feedback in generalities can lead to misunderstandings. Managers should be specific and focus on observable actions and facts so that everyone is on the same page.
Coach compassionately
When in coaching mode, managers should choose their words wisely and deliver them tactfully to ensure that the conversation stays positive, constructive, and growth-oriented.
5 ways to put learning at the center of performance reviews
A guide to transform managers into learning champions and develop high-performing teams
Employee goal setting and learning paths
Setting the right goals lead to employee and company success.
Help your managers set performance goals that drive the right behavior, helps prioritize work that moves the business, and guides high-quality decision-making.
Learn more on LinkedIn Learning
Setting goals and managing performance
Dr. Todd Dewett will help you set you create smart goals for your employees that align with your business strategy and their skills.
Setting team and employee goals
Mike Figliuolo walks you through different types of goals including bottom-up, zero-based, commit, and stretch goals.
"For maximum success, everyone needs at least one BHAG—a big hairy audacious goal. Something that's unreasonable. The idea is simple, if your goals aren't sometimes audacious, your performance won't be audacious either"
- Dr. Todd Dewett, Best-Selling Author at LinkedIn Learning, Inspirational Speaker, Leadership and Authenticity Guru
Top tips
Create SMART goals
When managers set goals with employees, make sure that they are SMART. It's an acronym for specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound.
Link goals to strategies
Managers should work with their teams to ensure that their goals and priorities ladder up to larger strategic initiatives or relevant to your company's mission and vision.
Everyone loves stretch goals
Stretch goals push team members to achieve more, reach higher, and build new skills. If they are intelligent risks, then make sure that the potential payoff is exponential.
Hold team accountable
When evaluating performance, did employees achieve their goals? Whether they knocked them out of the park or fell short, a performance review is a great time to discuss future goals.
5 ways to put learning at the center of performance reviews
A guide to transform managers into learning champions and develop high-performing teams
Managers leading high performance teams
High performing teams amplify positive outcomes.
Performance reviews is when managers can not only evaluate individual performance, but also promote key cultural expectations to create high-performing teams.
Learn more on LinkedIn Learning
Creating a high performance culture
Mike Figliuolo reveals how to define your organization's culture, set direction, manage performance, and foster a culture of learning.
Creating the conditions for others to thrive
Arianna Huffington and others discuss practical changes to reduce stress and focus your energy on your team.
"Your mission is your purpose. It explains why the organization exists and how it contributes to the world. The culture you build is an enabler of accomplishing your mission. High performance cultures stand for something, the vision and mission represent an ideal or a goal that people can get behind."
- Mike Figliuolo, Managing Director, thoughtLEADERS
Top tips
Define high performance
Whether you factor in hard business metrics, such as revenue, or qualitative metrics like employee engagement, define and measure what high-performance means in your organization.
Be a storyteller
Stories help build a high-performing culture because they are memorable, engaging, and can demonstrate the culture a manager is trying to create.
Recognize positive behavior
Rewards reinforce behaviors that are consistent with the culture you're trying to build and performance you're trying to drive—individually and collectively.
Promote inclusivity and belonging
Diverse teams that celebrate differences and accept them, are well-known to collaborate more effectively and achieve more together.
5 ways to put learning at the center of performance reviews
A guide to transform managers into learning champions and develop high-performing teams
Growing employees across the performance spectrum
Help managers grow the careers of everyone on their team.
Within a team, performance typically falls along a bell curve—some exceeding expectations, a few struggling, and most in the middle—and each requires a different approach during a performance review.
Learn more on LinkedIn Learning
Managing high potentials
Sara Canaday helps you understand the mindset and motivations of high potentials so you can meet their help them grow and develop.
Improving employee performance
Don Phin explains how to get to the root of poor employee performance and coach low-performing employees. (Free through 12/31/19)
Individual performance plan
This template that managers and employees can work on together, can help them document learning goals and then the recommended courses to build their skills.
"High-performers are best rewarded with growth opportunities. Wither it's a promotion or assignment to a new project. This type of recognition results in a clear win-win for you and the employee."
- Don Phin, Keynote Speaker and Emotional Intelligence Trainer
Top tips
Stretch high-potentials
Most high-performers thrive when their skills are stretched and their job scope increases. Give them new challenges while providing the right level of support and independence.
Coach high-performers to learn
When new challenges are given, high-potentials are terrified of failure. Help them build new skills by integrating learning into their individual performance plan to help them feel confident and succeed.
Talk about poor performance
Performance evaluations can sometimes hinder performance. Instead, managers should have a conversation about it, listen to the context an employee gives, and then work together on a plan to move forward.
Set clear expectations
Make sure that an employee who is struggling understands what managers expect of them moving forward and the gap between current performance and what is acceptable.
5 ways to put learning at the center of performance reviews
A guide to transform managers into learning champions and develop high-performing teams
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