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Honest answers to performance review?


Joeyinthesky

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I guess this is kind of fluffy as I’m sure people do answer honestly... I just can’t and keep my job! I’m sitting here considering my answers to PR questions, with an upcoming meeting with my boss to discuss.


What have been my biggest successes in the last six months... list 3-5!


Honest answer: 1. getting out of bed each day and turning up each day, 2. not whacking one of my colleagues around the ears for his lack of attention to detail in setting up projects which affect us all, 3..... hmmm, I got nuttin’ else


How am I feeling about my work right now?

1. Overwhelmed

2. Unenthusiastic

3. Proscrastinatory (not a word?)

4. Burned out


More questions in a similar vein that I’m going to have to fudge my way through. I want to crawl back under the covers...


Anyone got any amusing stories of performance reviews gone wrong... or right?!

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I have been thinking about this but can't think of anything useful but I do play 'performance bingo' in my head when I did have reviews of all the corporate speak they used which kept me sane while trying to come up with answers


And 3. is a word if we say it is a word!


maybe throw in


'I send the idea up the flagpole and wait to see who salutes' or

'maybe we can touch base'

'hit the ground running with that'

they seem to like these

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Guest Chic n Stu

I guess this is kind of fluffy as I’m sure people do answer honestly... I just can’t and keep my job! I’m sitting here considering my answers to PR questions, with an upcoming meeting with my boss to discuss.


What have been my biggest successes in the last six months... list 3-5!


Honest answer: 1. getting out of bed each day and turning up each day, 2. not whacking one of my colleagues around the ears for his lack of attention to detail in setting up projects which affect us all, 3..... hmmm, I got nuttin’ else


How am I feeling about my work right now?

1. Overwhelmed

2. Unenthusiastic

3. Proscrastinatory (not a word?)

4. Burned out


More questions in a similar vein that I’m going to have to fudge my way through. I want to crawl back under the covers...


Anyone got any amusing stories of performance reviews gone wrong... or right?!

 

Your honest answers are pretty well fine with a little rewording, 1) just becomes maintaining a consistently high level of effort and attendance despite challenging circumstances, 2) is all about building positive relationships and displaying emotional intelligence, and maybe even identifying potential errors and taking preventative action if you happened to say "Hey bozo, you forgot the TPS report".


Even if you didn't deliver anything new and shiny, I figure nothing going wrong is a compelling achievement in the world we're living in right now!

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I was once probably slightly too honest - but to be fair it was a toxic workplace. There was a spot for "extra-curricular" stuff, how you'd contributed to the firm outside the core work. I had previously been in charge of a few social events but had been asked to step down as it was felt I was too "senior" (read: expensive) to be organising such trivial matters. I answered that I was doing nothing as I had been prohibited from contributing, but that I was contributing to the broader profession on a number of boards/committees etc. instead. I mentioned the person who had made me stop. All hell broke loose. A few years later all the staff from that firm watched as I received an Australia wide award for my contribution to the profession, in those exact roles I took on when they didn't want me "wasting my time"!

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In a good work environment, those truths should be part of the discussion and your managers should be helping to resolve them. Is there something you'd like to learn? Another department to second in? More training? Trying to implement something new? Or just a holiday!

It's not great for you to be bored and unmotivated but also for them, they'll get more out of you if you're engaged.


But many of us do not work in places like that. So, if you want out, are there skills that would help you move to your next place? Maybe getting a start on those kind of plans will be enough to increase your motivation.


Not perf review but interview. I stupidly mentioned a 'difficult person I had to work with' by name and one interviewer said she knew them well. Whoops.

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We have a new term doing the rounds. Perhaps you can feedback on how you `cascade information' down to your team if you are in management?


In my office, it's been all about cascading information this week. Apparently we don't share information any more.


I avoid management as much as I can and luckily meetings with the CEO are voluntary, so I never volunteer. If I ever had to suffer through this garbage I would prepare and drop in as many management terms as possible. Have you recently analysed the synergies in your office lately? If you need more management speak let me know.

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In a good work environment, those truths should be part of the discussion and your managers should be helping to resolve them. Is there something you'd like to learn? Another department to second in? More training? Trying to implement something new? Or just a holiday!

It's not great for you to be bored and unmotivated but also for them, they'll get more out of you if you're engaged.


But many of us do not work in places like that. So, if you want out, are there skills that would help you move to your next place? Maybe getting a start on those kind of plans will be enough to increase your motivation.


Not perf review but interview. I stupidly mentioned a 'difficult person I had to work with' by name and one interviewer said she knew them well. Whoops.

 

Unfortunately not that kind of workplace, I report directly to my employer/company owner.

It’s difficult to get him to understand how the constant chasing of new directions is affecting all the staff, and not all the leadership team have the experience they need - but I respect him and value the job. Just feeling totally mentally exhausted and lacking clarity around my role. I think I need to move on but it’s tricky - I’ve been at the same place for 12+ years and risen through three roles in that time to what I’m doing now. Came from a completely different industry. So my resume would look rather thin!

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We have a new term doing the rounds. Perhaps you can feedback on how you `cascade information' down to your team if your in management?


In my office, it's been all about cascading information this week. Apparently we don't share information any more.


I avoid management as much as I can and luckily meetings with the CEO are voluntary, so I never volunteer. If I ever had to suffer through this garbage I would prepare and drop in as many management terms as possible. Have you recently analysed the synergies in your office lately? If you need more management speak let me know.

 

LOL ‘cascade information’ :lol:

How ridiculous is it?! Plain speech just doesn’t seem to factor in any more.

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Watch Season 1 Episode 4 (Onwards and Upwards) of Utopia (ABC) series. It has a great side story of performance appraisals and jargon.

 

I think I might use this as preparation for the 360 degree appraisals that are about to be implemented...Apparently that's where everyone is providing feedback/informing on everyone else. :roll:


What on earth is it with the ongoing jargon? Do they all attend the same seminar? I hope it's not catching. :ninja:


:sunglasses: I need to bake and eat a batch of chocolate chip biscuits. This will all just fade away.

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We have a new term doing the rounds. Perhaps you can feedback on how you `cascade information' down to your team if you are in management?


In my office, it's been all about cascading information this week. Apparently we don't share information any more.

 

 

That sounds a bit dangerous, imagine being engulfed in a flurry if everyone decides to cascade information all at the same time.

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Tell them how awesome you are. You don’t get anywhere by telling the truth. Pretend you’re Donald trump. What would he do? If employee reviews are used for pay rises then you need to toot your own horn, loudly.


I usually keep my answers brief and to the point cause our pay reviews are completely arbitrary and I haven’t even had one in 18 months. So there is no point saying anything other than “yes, I did do well” “yes I did meet that criteria” because they don’t give a fig about it.

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Guest Chic n Stu

We have a new term doing the rounds. Perhaps you can feedback on how you `cascade information' down to your team if you are in management?


In my office, it's been all about cascading information this week. Apparently we don't share information any more.

 

 

That sounds a bit dangerous, imagine being engulfed in a flurry if everyone decides to cascade information all at the same time.

 

Oh nah that's too easy, you just take an agile approach and pivot to a new framework, just make sure you socialise it and get some buy-in. Tell them that this is your burning platform to really build that urgency.

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We have a new term doing the rounds. Perhaps you can feedback on how you `cascade information' down to your team if you are in management?


In my office, it's been all about cascading information this week. Apparently we don't share information any more.

 

 

That sounds a bit dangerous, imagine being engulfed in a flurry if everyone decides to cascade information all at the same time.

 

Oh nah that's too easy, you just take an agile approach and pivot to a new framework, just make sure you socialise it and get some buy-in. Tell them that this is your burning platform to really build that urgency.

 

I feel like we may be in the presence of a master here.

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Guest Chic n Stu



That sounds a bit dangerous, imagine being engulfed in a flurry if everyone decides to cascade information all at the same time.

 

Oh nah that's too easy, you just take an agile approach and pivot to a new framework, just make sure you socialise it and get some buy-in. Tell them that this is your burning platform to really build that urgency.

 

I feel like we may be in the presence of a master here.

 

See I'm just spewing dumb corporate buzzwords here, you just ostensibly paid me a compliment and brutally dunked on me all in one line. This is a masterclass right here :lol:


(I know you probably meant it kindly but it still sorta kills me, I've been a manager in a large organisation for 15 years now and that's just a small sampling of the shit that has me spraining my eyeballs in real life. I try to lead by example in speaking like a normal human being but sometimes the occasional buzzword slips out and I die a little more inside)

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We have a new term doing the rounds. Perhaps you can feedback on how you `cascade information' down to your team if you are in management?


Oh nah that's too easy, you just take an agile approach and pivot to a new framework, just make sure you socialise it and get some buy-in. Tell them that this is your burning platform to really build that urgency.

 

Oh my, yes all of those enter my meetings daily. It's very hard not to find yourself saying the same things when you have a habit of constant code switching which you credit with getting you so far in the first place. I haven't heard burning platform though so that'll be my bingo word for next week!


As for the performance review, I think it depends on the relationship. Most of my direct reports put "surviving" in their achievements for 2020 and it is completely valid!!!


ETA no idea why that's in a quote sorry

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I used to work for one of the big 4, but left about 10 years ago and moved to a company with only 10 staff. What a change. Some of the comments above are giving me PTSD :)


We used to have to complete an annual staff survey. It was a big deal, heaps of questions, took ages to do and of course your team doing well in the staff survey would be a management KPI (are they still called that?). Anyway had this department head, who decided to cascade her KPIs down to us, so now we were getting marked on how well we did in the staff survey - the same staff survey that we are completing. So one of the teams in my department decided to mark their entire survey 100%. So when the results came through our department head was thrilled. Of course she got marked well in her performance review, as did the manager of the specific department, and of course all of the staff in the department. We all thought it was hilarious and couldn't believe they did it. Even better, a morning tea was organised with a big cake to celebrate the 100% survey score! So we got cake because a bunch of people lied on a survery.

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Joeyinthesky

Just in case anyone is interested, my performance review was yesterday.

With some trepidation I was indeed honest (as tactfully phrased as I could manage) with my boss - about my lack of engagement, totally overwhelming workload and general mental exhaustion. After a lengthy, draining discussion I have solutions... immediate recruitment of someone in a support role so I can take proper leave and share the workload, engaged a professional to assist in some areas I am lacking experience- for both PD for me and comprehensive review of business practices. Oh, and a decent pay rise AND verbal and written acknowledgment of my going above and beyond over the past couple of years in my position, and my value to the leadership team!

Sometimes, honesty really IS the best policy I guess.

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Just in case anyone is interested, my performance review was yesterday.

With some trepidation I was indeed honest (as tactfully phrased as I could manage) with my boss - about my lack of engagement, totally overwhelming workload and general mental exhaustion. After a lengthy, draining discussion I have solutions... immediate recruitment of someone in a support role so I can take proper leave and share the workload, engaged a professional to assist in some areas I am lacking experience- for both PD for me and comprehensive review of business practices. Oh, and a decent pay rise AND verbal and written acknowledgment of my going above and beyond over the past couple of years in my position, and my value to the leadership team!

Sometimes, honesty really IS the best policy I guess.

 

Wow! Thats amazing!


I need to have a similar conversation tomorrow with my boss... not a formal performance review as such, just a review of my OKRs, and my mind is in a similar place to you. I know for a fact though that I wont get the outcome you did. No money for it.

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Just in case anyone is interested, my performance review was yesterday.

With some trepidation I was indeed honest (as tactfully phrased as I could manage) with my boss - about my lack of engagement, totally overwhelming workload and general mental exhaustion. After a lengthy, draining discussion I have solutions... immediate recruitment of someone in a support role so I can take proper leave and share the workload, engaged a professional to assist in some areas I am lacking experience- for both PD for me and comprehensive review of business practices. Oh, and a decent pay rise AND verbal and written acknowledgment of my going above and beyond over the past couple of years in my position, and my value to the leadership team!

Sometimes, honesty really IS the best policy I guess.

 

That is so brilliant, I am so happy for you! And that your boss was smart enough to take your honesty and use it to improve things like staffing levels as well as the pay rise for you!

If only more bosses had the intelligence to actually listen to staff, the world really would be better.

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Joeyinthesky


Wow! Thats amazing!


I need to have a similar conversation tomorrow with my boss... not a formal performance review as such, just a review of my OKRs, and my mind is in a similar place to you. I know for a fact though that I wont get the outcome you did. No money for it.

 

I hope your conversation went well, and maybe pleasantly surprised you.

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Joeyinthesky

That is so brilliant, I am so happy for you! And that your boss was smart enough to take your honesty and use it to improve things like staffing levels as well as the pay rise for you!

If only more bosses had the intelligence to actually listen to staff, the world really would be better.

 

Thanks and yes, I am lucky - one of the reasons I’ve been holding on to the job through this long rough patch. I’m actually now looking forward to getting my mojo back.

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Wow! Thats amazing!


I need to have a similar conversation tomorrow with my boss... not a formal performance review as such, just a review of my OKRs, and my mind is in a similar place to you. I know for a fact though that I wont get the outcome you did. No money for it.

 

I hope your conversation went well, and maybe pleasantly surprised you.

 

Actually it did in the end, not quite as amazing as yours went but I was pleasantly surprised.

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Oh that's great news OP!

Unfortunately my current micromanaging boss would have made me fill in a spreadsheet of my requests (by COB yesterday please!) , coupled with wanting me to create calendar invites and probably casenotes about the same requests, then would have asked her Mgr for input. We then would have got an email cut n pasting the upper Mgr's advice, replying that everything I had raised was unreasonable. She would then have launched a new process involving a lot of double-handling and inefficiency. She would probably have then reprimanded me for not billing my KPI that day due to all the non-billable admin that a 15 min phone call could have avoided.

Me jaded? Never....

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