A Manager’s Perspective on the Performance Management Cycle

The term performance management may bring a shiver down your spine, as it did mine when I first started in management. Many managers, myself included, find themselves shying away from having performance conversations, especially the ones requiring sharing corrective feedback and creating performance improvement plans.

Much of the discomfort of having performance conversations, especially for new managers, comes from a need for knowledge, understanding, and experience in performance management. To make the process of performance management process easier to follow and understand for both the manager and the employee, using a performance management cycle may be what you need.

What is A Performance Management Cycle?

A performance management cycle is a model with steps that leaders follow to support their employees' continuous improvement and development.

While the components of a performance management cycle may vary depending on the organization, for the most part, the average performance management cycle includes four or five steps. The steps usually include goal and expectation setting, measuring progress towards goal achievement and expectations, providing feedback and development, reviewing performance (typically in a formal review process), and rewarding performance.

Why Are Performance Management Cycles Important?

Performance management cycles are essential as they give managers a roadmap and prompt them to ensure ongoing individual development. For employees, it sets expectations of the process that will be followed and reassures them that they will receive timely and frequent feedback, which they crave. In fact, LinkedIn uncovered that 60% of employees want regular feedback, and 75% agreed that feedback was valuable to their performance.

So instead of waiting for an annual review, which many find outdated, the performance management cycle is meant to be a continuous process with frequent coaching and feedback embedded in it.

How to Use a Performance Management Cycle + Tools and Templates 

Whether your organization has its performance management cycle or you’re going at it alone, here is an example of the typical steps in a performance management cycle, what’s expected in each section, and tools and templates to help you in the process.

4-Step Performance Management Cycle

1. Set Expectations & Goals
2. Measure Progress & Provide Feedback
3. Review & Debrief
4. Celebrate Success
   
   

Set Expectations & Goals 

In the initial stage of the performance management cycle, this is your time to meet with each of your team members individually to set expectations and co-collaborate on their development goals for the year ahead. Use this time to finalize yearly goals and corresponding development plans outlining the skills they need to develop to achieve their goals, any required training or development opportunities, and discuss how the process will work throughout the year.

In addition, use the meeting time to set the stage for ongoing 1:1 meetings. You will want to ensure clear expectations of how they should prepare for the 1:1 meetings and how you will use your time together to provide them with coaching and feedback.

Here are two free tools you can use to set expectations and goals going forward: 

• Professional Goals Workbook: To make the goal-setting process less elusive and more actionable, use this workbook that contains a four-step process and several worksheets and templates to help you co-create goals.
• How To Create a Development Plan (+Template): Get everything you need to write an individual development plan - from tips and tricks to best practices and even an editable template; we’ve got you covered.

Measure Progress & Provide Feedback

This phase of the performance management cycle is where you spend most of your time. Within these meetings, you can get an update from your team member on their progress toward hitting their milestones and goal and provide your input, coaching, and feedback to help them stay motivated and on track to achieve their development and performance goals.

Here are two free tools you can use to measure progress and give feedback:

• One-on-One Meetings Toolkit: One-on-one meetings are a chance to connect, receive updates, offer feedback or guidance, and provide coaching. To help you conduct them, this toolkit contains a template, a list of questions, and a checklist.
• The Guide to Giving Constructive Feedback: Despite the fear, anxiety, or discomfort leaders tend to feel when giving constructive feedback, employees today crave it. This guide will equip you with everything you need to know about providing constructive feedback so that you can start giving your employees what they need to improve their performance. 

Review & Debrief

At the end of the year, it’s time to schedule a meeting to review the outcomes to assess if the employee’s goals were achieved. You will now conduct a performance review to evaluate the individual's performance against observable behaviors and metrics you laid out at the beginning of the performance management cycle.

In addition, use this meeting time to debrief the process and goal setting to uncover what worked well that you will continue to do as you start the cycle over again and what didn’t work or what needs to be modified in the future. Topic to explore could include evaluating if the goals were realistic or if the level of support was adequate, as an example.

Here are two free articles and tools you can use when reviewing and debriefing an employee’s performance: 

• Performance Review Template: A good performance review doesn’t just provide a rating in a specific area; it contains your personal observations and examples that back up your rating. Fortunately, this performance review template has space for both.
• How to Host Post-Mortem Meetings That Actually Add Value: Debriefing the outcome of a goal achievement, a project, or an activity is an often missed yet precious step to understanding better why something happened the way it did. Learn how to run an effective recap meeting with the questions you should be asking in this article.

Celebrate Success

The last step in the performance management cycle is rewarding and celebrating the success of your employee. Use the time in your review meeting to share your kudos, thanking them for the effort they’ve demonstrated and any formal incentives they may receive if it is part of their employment plan.

Here is an article you should read to help you do exactly that: 

• Celebrating Milestones at Work: There are many benefits to taking the time to celebrate your employees and their achievements at work. Gain practical tips and ideas on how to do so in this article.