Performance Management is vital within any organisation. Done well, it can turbo boost the performance and productivity levels of your people by raising their standards of achievement to new heights and increasing moral and motivation within your company. Done badly, it can demoralise, de-motivate and cause people to underperform resulting in a detrimental effect on your bottom line.

Whilst some people may have more of a natural aptitude for managing people’s performance well, most people need to hone and enhance these skills. With the right performance management training and management skills training you can raise the level of poor performance and boost the performance of high achievers.

Follow our top 5 tips below to boost your performance management skills:-

Tip #1 - Set clear expectations

One of the most significant blocks to effective performance is a lack of clarity about ‘what is expected of me’.  People cannot perform to the required standard if they are unsure about what that standard is. The biggest mistake with this is in assuming people ‘just know’ what’s required. Never assume. Ensure that expectations are clearly explained, check understanding and challenge assumptions.

Tip #2 - Treat people as individuals

Every person is different and will respond differently to various approaches.  These distinctions between individuals have to be taken into account when managing performance. What works well with one person, may not with the next. In order to get the best out of everyone it’s important to be able to adapt your approach depending on the person.

Tip #3 - Regular feedback

Managers and leaders who excel at managing performance do not wait until the quarterly review or annual appraisal to discuss people’s performance.  The best way to manage performance to discuss it on a regular and informal basis, and then use these formal meetings merely to confirm and record what has been discussed regularly throughout the year. That way there are no ‘surprises’ in the review or appraisal as things are already out in the open.

Tip #4 - Focus on the positive

To get the best from people you must maximize the use of praise and positive reinforcement. This does not mean that you ignore the negative aspects of their performance but rather that you focus on how to improve it. Also, it’s all too easy to comment when things aren’t up to scratch and to brush over the good things, but if you want to encourage better performance you have to acknowledge people’s achievements and positively reinforce this to them.

Tip #5 - Support and develop

Supporting people to achieve their full potential is the role of a good manager. This support could come in the form of mentoring, coaching, training, specific projects, e-learning, seminars or other development activities. It is no good simply pointing out where someone is falling short of the mark without discussing some plan of action to address the issues. Conversely, if people are performing well they need some incentive to continue doing so.