Communications Specialist for Insperity Recruiting Services, specializing in employment branding and recruitment marketing.
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As 2020 winds down, employees around the world are preparing for their annual performance reviews. For some, the review process involves an evaluation of goal accomplishments over the past year, while for others, it focuses on the assignment of new goals for the upcoming year. Hopefully, for most, it will include a combination of the two.
It goes without saying that the past year has been like no other in recent history. The ways in which the workforce has changed outnumber the ways it has stayed the same, and employees and employers alike have been forced to adapt in order to stay relevant and productive. Covid-19 has made certain goals unattainable while presenting a host of new challenges for both employees and employers, and as a result, 2020’s performance review must also adapt.
Though many employees may not have achieved the yearly goals set for them by management months before the coronavirus emerged, their ability to overcome obstacles and adapt to changes that 2020 has presented are worthy of mention, and their performance reviews should reflect this. Likewise, employers should recognize these accomplishments and reprioritize goal evaluation and scoring accordingly.
Let’s look at some ways employees can highlight their unique challenges and accomplishments during the pandemic in their upcoming performance reviews.
Leadership
One doesn’t have to hold a manager or director role in order to lead, and many employees of all levels have shown great leadership qualities over the past year. Those who have taken on additional responsibilities in order to cover talent shortages or train and onboard new hires, those who have assisted others who were laid off in finding work, those who have organized or participated in volunteer activities and those who have become homeschool teachers or tutors in addition to maintaining their job responsibilities have all displayed leadership skills that are worthy of mention in performance reviews.
Innovation
Innovative thinking is required to actively drive change. However, 2020 has been full of changes, and the result has been reactive innovation. Employees who had never worked on distributed teams before suddenly had to establish home offices, master video conferencing software and navigate virtual meetings in order to conduct business as usual. Though remote work has been around for several years, never have so many been thrust into it simultaneously. In order to ensure work continued and goals were met, innovative minds developed new processes to keep teams productive and companies profitable. Employees who contributed in any shape or form should include this in their reviews.
Teamwork
How would it be possible to overcome the challenges 2020 has presented without collaboration and teamwork? Every functional team must work well together. But for a team that is used to meeting in conference rooms and conducting business with clients face to face, achieving the same goals while social distancing takes time, effort, trust and a great deal of teamwork. The freedom of remote work can be both a blessing and a curse, and teammates must be able to rely on each other when needed. If adjustments were successfully made and business goals accomplished throughout the year, this is worth mentioning in employee reviews.
Adaptability
All of the elements mentioned above can be boiled down to adaptability. This year has brought with it hurricanes, wildfires, civil unrest — all challenges that required those in local areas to adapt. But Covid-19 is unique in that it has affected the entire world and has required everyone to adapt and overcome for nearly the entire year. Though many businesses weren’t able to withstand the impact, for others, client needs, work locations and company procedures all changed, and those whose employees were able to adapt have survived. Experienced managers know that change is constant and that adaptability is integral to company success, which is why it should be included in employee performance reviews.
Continuous Learning
It’s been said that no one should emerge from the pandemic without learning a new skill. For some, this may be directly related to work, such as becoming familiar with video conferencing software or taking online classes. For others, it may be the teaching skills and lesson plan preparation necessitated by homeschooling. And for others, it may be hobbies or artistic endeavors such as exercising, cooking, painting, music or any other constructive activity undertaken to relieve the isolation of remote work. Regardless, these all speak to employees’ desire to learn, time-management skills, strong engagement levels, productivity and physical and mental wellness. Though in past years management may have questioned listing non-work-related skills in performance reviews, in 2020, any effort to learn while bringing positivity to a negative situation should be fair game.
Year In Review
While the effectiveness of performance reviews has been a hotly debated topic in recent years, employers that feel strongly about them are not likely to abandon them despite 2020’s many changes. However, several of these changes have affected employee goals significantly enough that pre-pandemic targets must now be reevaluated and adjusted. Just as employees were expected to pivot and adapt to changes necessitated by the pandemic in order to keep companies operational, employers must also be willing to do the same for employee performance reviews.
By taking into consideration the elements over which employees had no control throughout the year and making necessary scoring adjustments, employers will show both fairness and appreciation for employees’ efforts and dedication. Likewise, while employees’ challenges and accomplishments may look a bit different in 2020 from previous years, knowing their efforts are still being recognized despite the changing workforce landscape will help build trust with employers and confidence in the annual review process.
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