Yeah, Happy New Year, now tell me what you did last year. Maybe it’s not quite that abrupt, but this time of year, Communications and Marketing professionals have to launch 2014 initiatives while prepping to tell their own stories of 2013 performance for upcoming reviews. Whether we’re reviewing our team members or gearing up for our own reviews, there are a few things that help both sides of the equation.
In managing my own teams over the years, my biggest goal was not to have any surprises for the people I managed. While I can’t say I got to 100% every year, the number of surprises decreased significantly by exercising these practices. Admittedly, most of them have everything to do with what we should have been doing all year long (versus what we’re doing to prepare now). So if they help you set up a better discussion for next year, I’ll call that a win, too.
Get Specific: I suspect most of us have heard of S.M.A.R.T. objectives (Specific, Measureable, Assignable, Realistic, and Time-Specific). Maybe you’re not a fan of mnemonics, but this one from Peter Drucker always has made sense for me, and for my teams. Easy to remember, covers the basics and puts specifics on paper. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SMART_criteria
Include insights from a range of stakeholders: Good managers will seek input from a range of stakeholders who an employees connects or collaborates with, but employees should do the very same. It helps provide perspective from someone other than – well, you. Nothing like that third party to sell a point of view, right?
Don’t wait until the end of the year: So this one’s too late for 2013, but you should be thinking about — and collecting — feedback and insights throughout the year from your clients. It can come in the form of email, a hand-written note, or even a photo or video. They all help sell the story of your trials and triumphs.
Present the big picture: No one is perfect, and the tone and intent of your self-reported progress takes a much more authentic tone if you include what you rocked with, along with what you’ve learned. This may sound counterintuitive to some, but learning from failures or disappointments can show your manager your commitment to growth and your transparency in reporting. If there are one or two goals that you came close to achieving, and you know the boss is aware of them, focus on the learnings and what you’ve done to adjust for next time. You’ll at least buy yourself some authenticity points.
Don’t write the novel: Many organizations have forms that limit how much data you can input to show what you’ve done towards an established goal. Still others have seemingly unending space. You think your boss wants to read a novel? You’re a communicator or marketer, so communicate like one. Get to the point, and ensure they actually line up with the stated goal. PS – If you don’ t have clearly articulated goals, guess who will end up being hurt most by it at the end of the year? Yes, it rhymes with ewe.
Get clarity around “meeting” versus “exceeding” the goal: Getting 1.4 million impressions versus 1.3 million on the goal is a technical win, but likely won’t buy you many points for “exceeding” a goal. Smart managers are looking for impact of your work, so if the extra 100,000 impressions reached a new stakeholder group that generated a real business impact, THAT’s where exceeding a goal starts coming into focus. You should be thinking about how your accomplishments exceeded not just the number goals, but how they contributed to real business results, created a new capability, saved money, accelerated performance and launched new opportunities for business growth. In other words – as I always like to say – what’s the REAL outCOME? Not the output. Here again, getting clarity with your manager can help – up front. “Manager, what might exceeding this goal look like to you?” My wife likes to tell the story of asking a great question to a potential boss during a job interview. She was so impressed with herself for asking the question that she forgot to listen to his response! Ah, the power of a question, and its answer.
Most of us have been at this a while, so it’s all about stepping back from time to time, and reminding ourselves what real performance looks like to us, our managers and the businesses we serve. But there’s also real power in talking with our teammates about these kinds of specifics. It helps align expectation and really reduces the potential for those unpleasant “surprises” at review time. And let’s face it — we can all use more of that.
