This time of year made me think about all of the hoops employees, leaders and organizations are going
through right now regarding Performance Management.  Let's be honest more times than not it is seen as a "check the box" annual process.  Rarely or certainly in the minority is it a living, breathing process called on and discussed throughout the year.  Why is that?  At a very early age we were not conditioned this way.  Quite the contrary.  One thing all of us have in common is that at some point we were all students.  We were conditioned as students to be expected to be evaluted and held accountable on a regular basis.  The report card.  I have often wondered why this basic and long standing approach tends to wane in the workplace.  As students we knew almost immediately the goals, how we were going to be measured, how often and by whom.  We often even knew the punishment in advance from leaderhip (teachers-nuns in my case and parents)
as well as the rewards.  Still, even in our early academic days I am sure you can recall instances where even then some leaders had the check the box attitude.  Remember the time(s) when you worked feverishly to get that homework done or that report turned in on time?  Only to have the teacher forget to check or do a quick assessment as to who did it but not truly looking at the body of work.  Remember that "why should I bother" feeling?  Okay admittedly there
were also those occasions that brought about a big "whoosh," where you lived to fight another day.  Imagine if that check the box approach had been the norm in our academic years. 
Think about the water cooler conversations we have heard of (or maybe even a part of) regarding Performance Management.  At the beginning of the year it's all about getting it ready knowing it will be seldom discussed through out the year.  The end of the year brings a "where is that file" discussion or blowing off the dust for a quick discussion or submission with no discussion at all.  Presto! Box checked ready for another year.  Feel good?  Obviously not.  Look at any Voice of the Employee Survey or Leadership Surveys and the data and sentiments reflect both approaches.  Underperforming organizations often do not clearly articulate goals/expectations and the measurement of performance. Feedback often
reflects confusion on priorities and the "why bother"attitude.  Strong performing organizations communicate expectations early and often with performance tied directly to rewards.  Individuals are engaged and know what is expected of them.  Maybe it's me but a simple straight forward report card, that I know is coming is a much better approach than some rubics cube, disconnected, rarely visited
PM review process. 

Joe Barrett
VP of Sales
Achievant