Why Traditional Yearly Evaluations Aren’t Effective

In the past, companies used to do performance reviews once a year, but now they’re finding that this needs to be improved. Even big companies like Apple and Google have stopped doing annual reviews and are doing them more often. Other companies are also seeing the benefits of doing reviews more frequently and are getting rid of the yearly ones.

Here are a few reasons why annual reviews don’t work and some other ideas you can consider instead.

Annual Reviews Don’t Account for Changes in Employee Preferences

Not long ago, people were content with jobs that offered decent pay and benefits, and they often stayed with the same company for a very long time.

But things have changed. Nowadays, employees want more than just a paycheck. Younger workers especially want pay raises more often; they want jobs that help them learn and grow, and they want their efforts recognized.

The problem is that annual performance reviews, which happen only once a year, must match these new employee expectations. Many employees want feedback more frequently, and they feel more valued when they get that feedback.

Many employers think employees leave for better pay elsewhere, but that’s not true for most. Only a tiny percentage of employees get more money when they switch jobs, showing that employees are looking for more than just a higher salary.

Annual Reviews Don’t Help Reduce Turnover

Another problem with annual performance reviews is that they can make employees leave their jobs more often. The reason is that more than one day a year to talk about concerns, ask for more pay, and get feedback is needed.

Employees want to know how well they’re doing at their jobs. Waiting for a year between reviews makes employees wonder if they meet their boss’s expectations. It can be frustrating during the annual review when employees hear about something that could have been discussed months earlier.

When employees are left wondering how they’re doing, with many months between their chances to talk about it, they start looking for a new job.

Annual Reviews Cause Headaches for HR Departments

HR departments have an easier time when they only have to deal with reviews once a year, but it’s the opposite.

Collecting a year’s worth of performance information on each employee takes time, and important details can get lost. Annual reviews often depend on the employee’s work anniversary, and this process requires a lot of work from HR.

Review forms need to be handed out and collected. HR has to make sure that managers approve them during the process. After that, HR and management teams must make decisions based on all those reviews, which can be challenging.

The best way to solve this problem is to use HR software that does the performance review process automatically.

Annual Reviews Can Lead to Outdated Compensation

Annual reviews can make it hard to give your best employees the pay raises or promotions they deserve. These reviews mean employees might have to wait six, eight, or even more months before getting a raise. If they don’t get the raise, after all that waiting, they might start thinking about finding a new job.

Some employees don’t feel like their hard work is recognized. Others think they should be paid more than they are, and they might also feel like the promotion they want is too far away. In such cases, these employees often start looking for other jobs.

The job market is changing quickly, and it’s now easier for employees to find jobs that pay better before their following annual review.

Annual Reviews Don’t Account for Changing Goals

Annual reviews don’t consider the fact that things are changing. What customers want, what employees want, and the organizations themselves are all changing.

If you only set goals once a year, those goals may become outdated by the time you do the annual review. It won’t make sense to see if those goals were achieved because they won’t match the current goals of the company or the employees.

When this happens, employees get frustrated because the annual review seems pointless. It also makes the employees feel like the bosses need to understand their goals or what they do for the organization.

Annual Reviews Tend to Look Backwards Instead of Forwards

Annual performance reviews often dwell on the past rather than looking ahead. They involve a lot of time spent gathering data on past performance and discussing what could have been done differently. It’s as if thinking about future performance is not a priority.

This approach can make employees feel like they are being judged without getting the information they need to do better in the future. It also makes them focus on past mistakes rather than looking forward to what they can achieve.

Annual Reviews Don’t Provide Actionable Data

Annual performance reviews need to provide detailed data. You might notice the big things, but when you have to go through a year’s worth of work, you’ll likely miss many small but essential details.

This can be frustrating for employees, meaning the data you collect needs to be completed. Only complete data can lead to accurate conclusions, which could benefit your business.

The solution is to gather all the performance data in one place. Many companies now use specialized software with reporting and analytics features instead of paper-based reviews

Annual Reviews Don’t Work for Today’s Workforce

The workforce is changing, and soon, most workers will be Millennials. Gen Z is also growing and is expected to make up a significant portion of the workforce as Baby Boomers and Gen X retire. What’s important to note is that the younger generation of workers doesn’t find annual reviews as helpful as older generations do.

Millennials feel more stressed when they have reviews less often, and 67% of Gen Z employees want to receive feedback in a timely and helpful way.

In today’s world, where people are quitting their jobs more frequently, it’s not as scary to look for a new job as it used to be. Millennials and Gen Z are more willing to search for new jobs with the desired work experience.

What Alternatives Can Be Considered in Place of Annual Reviews?

Instead of relying solely on Annual Reviews, consider other performance management approaches. To determine the right approach, ask these questions first:

Do your performance reviews make people perform better at their jobs?

Have you ever thought about what you want to achieve with your performance reviews? Or are you just going through the motions because it’s something you’re supposed to do?

The purpose of performance management isn’t just to look at what people did in the past – it’s about making a positive impact on their future performance. Sometimes, looking at how someone did before can help them improve in the future, but the ultimate goal is to help employees improve.

So, how do you know if your employees are getting better at their jobs? You need to know what to measure and how to measure it. If you’re not collecting and analyzing data, there’s no point in doing performance reviews.

Are your current performance reviews worth all the time and effort you put into them?

Think about the data you get from your performance appraisal process. If you’re spending a lot of time preparing for and having these reviews, and you’re not getting much out of it, consider a different review process.

It’s also essential to consider whether the management is getting what they need from the process or if it is frustrating because it takes too long.

And remember your employees. Even if management feels they are getting the correct information, you must check if your employees feel the same way. It’s essential to make sure that your current performance reviews are worth the time, effort, and energy for everyone involved.

What are the issues with your yearly review process?

Once you’ve thought about the previous questions and found some problems, it’s a good idea to dig deeper into your current process and identify any other issues. This way, you can find a better way to do performance reviews that suit your business.

For instance, if your team’s goals change during the year, it might be a sign that you should consider having more frequent performance check-ins. If your reviews mainly focus on the past and not the future, you could try doing a competency assessment to determine what knowledge gaps need to be filled with additional training.