For many organizations, performance management begins and ends with monthly, quarterly or even yearly performance reviews.
Top-level companies understand that creating a happy and productive team takes much more than a one-on-one session every few months. They are certainly an integral part of any reputable performance management strategy, but performance reviews aren’t a management strategy in and of themselves.
Performance management should go well beyond the occasional meeting where supervisors offer constructive criticism and evaluate compensation. It requires individualized goals, personalized recognition and daily attention. If employers want to create a performance management strategy that works, they must learn who their people are and understand what keeps them motivated.
Diversity in the Workplace
The world — and by proxy, every organization on the planet — comprises many individuals with specific needs, desires, cultures, hobbies and thought processes. As a result, what it takes to recognize, inspire and motivate varies from person to person. It might sound complicated, but it’s actually incredibly beneficial.
Diversity breeds out-of-the-box thinking. People from different cultures, generations, economic and socio-political backgrounds have varying levels of proficiency, experience and expertise. As a result, diversity directly contributes to increased creativity, dynamic problem solving and better decision-making.
The Importance of Individualized Performance Management
Of course, when an organization creates a diverse team, they must also diversify the way they motivate and manage their employees. If they learn and understand who their people are, they can create individualized performance expectations and detailed career pathing.
Creating an individualized approach to performance management enables employers to cater to their employees’ individual needs and goals. It allows them to ditch the one-size-fits-all approach and adopt individualized strategies that are proven to help people feel seen, recognized and valued — which is proven to be the most effective way to increase productivity, improve company morale and boost employee retention.
4 Proven Employee Performance Management Strategies That All Organizations Should Implement
1. Monitor Performance and Well-Being
The best and most successful organizations have a simple secret — they pay attention. Benchmarks and goals are useful tools employers can use to ensure initiatives are on the right track and the employee feels confident in what they’re doing. These goals should be measurable, but more importantly, they should be attainable to keep a person’s motivation level high.
Performance doesn’t end with productivity metrics and sales goals. Employers need to look beyond operations and pay careful attention to their employees’ well-being. There are so many things in and out of work that may impact a person’s performance, so supervisors should stay reasonably and appropriately aware of what’s going on in their employees’ lives and how they’re feeling.
2. Set Individual Goals for Each Team Member
Every employee should be regarded as an individual. Their needs, experiences and skills are different, so their goals and expectations should be, too.
Even when two people have the same job title, their expectations and goals should be tailored to their individual talents and career goals. Tools like Gallup’s CliftonStrengths Online Talent Assessment can help employers and employees recognize and capitalize on personal strengths, unlocking their potential and ultimately leading to better performance. Team members should be proud of their unique talents and confident in their ability to do their jobs.
3. One-On-One Feedback Sessions
The most effective way to stay in touch with employees is to talk to them. One-on-one feedback sessions should be used in conjunction or in place of yearly performance reviews. Employers should regularly take the time and space to recognize their employees’ accomplishments, offer constructive feedback and talk about their future within the organization.
Personalized performance management begins with a conversation. If a person feels heard, respected and understood, their employer will see a boost in their performance and better understand their needs. This is also a great way to check in and get to know employees on a professional level.
4. Offer Benefits That Support Employees’ Individual Lifestyles
Traditional benefits are an integral part of any employee benefits package. Health insurance, life insurance, retirement benefits and fair compensation are essential requirements for hiring and retaining top-tier talent. However, traditional benefits aren’t enough to keep people around long-term, and they certainly won’t aid in performance management.
Organizations who partner with Fringe get access to a completely customizable lifestyle benefits platform, enabling them to employ a next-level performance management strategy. Instead of using a standard incentive program to boost productivity and reward high performance, organizations have the ability to offer additional points for their lifestyle benefits platform when employees perform well or achieve individualized goals.
The platform contains various lifestyle benefits, including wellness and well-being programs, subscription services, grocery delivery, travel accommodation and more. The growing selection of benefits allows people to choose the benefits that will have the most significant impact on their life, thus creating a performance incentive program that is completely personalized to an employee’s individual lifestyle. Talk to our team to get started today!
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