Performance review? Use these 25 helpful phrases

Do you also want the quality of your performance review to go up? Not a tickbox exercise but just a good conversation between professional and manager. This is possible by asking good questions to each other. This ensures a meaningful and real conversation that actually strengthens your role as a professional. There is a basic requirement; both prepare with the performance appraisal tips in this blog.

Central question?

The topic and central question for the performance review? How do you make it professionally interesting for yourself in the coming year?

How do you use these phrases?

In many cases, you have a standard performance appraisal form in your own organization. Perhaps you can fit the questions below into it. You can also decide to leave the form for what it is and start the good conversation. You can use these sentences for that.

The phrases are suitable for both employees and managers and offer tips for using each other’s brainpower in a variety of ways. This is the way to achieve a good performance or annual appraisal.

Select from the suggestions below and send them to your employee in preparation.

The 25 phrases

Preparing for performance reviews

1. I have the following questions for you in preparation for this interview. (Please make a selection from this list). What questions would you like to ask me? (As a supervisor.)
2. What do you suggest as an agenda for this conversation? (Prior to the conversation.)

About own functioning

3. What work are you most proud of?
4. On a scale of 1 to 10, please indicate how much satisfaction you get from your work?
5. Which examples support the figure from item 4.
6. What were the 3 most inspiring moments or situations in your work this year? Tell us the gist of that?
7. What examples will you use to demonstrate the quality of your work?
8. Which 3 activities give you the most pleasure?
9. What 3 qualities can you infer from the work you mention (see item 8)
10. How would you like to enhance those qualities (see item 9)

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About the future

11. What do you personally see as opportunities within your work to continue to grow sustainably?
12. What work would you like to do more of (in the future)?
13. What training or support do you need to make your qualities better? (See items 8 – 10.)
14. What would you like to get better at? How does that help to better showcase your talent? What do you gain?

What goes well and not so well

15. These 3 activities at work are going well (name the examples and give an explanation and examples), why you think these activities work well for you and why they are important in the bigger picture.
16. When something goes less well: What opportunities do you see to solve it?
17. What are the downright energy guzzlers for you?

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About the collaboration

18. What 3 points should I pay more attention to when leading this department?
19. What 3 opportunities for improvement do you see for the department?
20. Please indicate on a scale of 1 to 10 how you experience cooperation in the department.
21. Which examples support the figure from question 20.
22. How would you describe your role on the team. Is that the role you would like to play or is that something else?
23. On a scale of 1 to 10, what grade do you give about the extent to which you are involved in important decisions at work.
24. What examples support this figure from question 23.

Making agreements

25. What do you think are the 3-5 most important agreements that we can capture from this conversation that are achievable.

In conclusion

Often a performance review is mandatory. Do not be distracted by this, make an effort to really engage with each other and discuss how you as a professional can best use your talent. This gives yourself energy and benefits the organization.