Preparation for the exercise is to read the summary of the 'Better performance management' survey findings from the Corporate Leadership Council research.
The exercise
For a team setting, if you can, project the findings page onto a screen so the whole team can see it. Otherwise, ask everyone to read the findings before the session and bring a copy along with them.
If you are doing this as an individual training exercise read the findings and reflect on the three questions below.
For a team, discuss the following three questions:
- To what extent do these findings resonate with your own experience?
- To what extent do they reflect common practice in your organisation?
- How might you use the information to improve your own performance management?
Agree actions:
- Write down some action points for yourself and/or for the team.
- Practice this new behaviour every day for the next three weeks.
- At the end of each week, spend a couple of minutes reviewing (individually or as a team) whether you are making the required changes to your behaviour. Put the review time in your calendar to remind yourself to do it.
Another way of doing this exercise
Without the preparation reading of the 'Better performance management' survey findings from the Corporate Leadership Council research, the team leader can hold a short quiz, asking people what they think the effect on performance of certain management behaviours is. The team leader has the "Better performance management: questions and answers" sheet and hands out the "Better performance management: scoresheet" to each member the team. The team leader then asks the questions one by one and people mark their answers on the sheet.
At the end, the team leader presents the answers found in the research. This is an interesting way to get the discussion started because people often feel that performance management is just about focusing on poor performance. In fact, the research makes clear that remarking on good performance is a much better way of getting improved performance from the team.
Agree actions as before.