How can you write annual review comments that make your employees grow (and not flee)?
How to write an annual performance review?
This is often a complex exercise, as any good manager knows that his or her assessment must be sufficiently representative of reality, while remaining concise, and must reveal the employee's strong points, as well as areas for improvement.
The stakes are high here, since it's just as much a question of helping the employee to develop as it is of helping the company to perform.
So how do you ensure that this meeting becomes the most constructive exchange possible?
This article gives you some valuable advice, and provides not just one example of an annual appraisal commentary, but several! This will give you a good idea of the best practices to apply in different situations 😉.
Definition of the annual appraisal comment
As a brief reminder, the annual appraisal is a meeting between an employee and his or her manager that takes place, unsurprisingly... once a year. Its purpose? To take stock of the past twelve months.
Have objectives been achieved?
What have been the successes, or on the contrary, the difficulties encountered?
What priorities should be identified for the period ahead?
What about the employee's needs and ambitions (development, skills enhancement, etc.)?
Annual performance review comments are the conclusions of the discussion, set out so that the employee can receive feedback from his or her manager. However, don't confuse this comment with the interview report !
In fact, its main purpose is to summarize the points raised during the meeting and to convey the impressions of each party. In a way, it's a personal and subjective summary, providing food for thought.
The annual review report, on the other hand, takes the form of an official, structured document, summarizing all the points discussed. More detailed, it serves as a written reference for HR decisions.
Importance and role of annual performance reviews
For the manager
For the manager, this document plays an important role, simply because it enables :
- conclude the discussion;
- share feedback with the employee.
It's written with kindness, to help the employee understand his or her weak points, not just to point them out, but to suggest real avenues for improvement that will consolidate his or her professional development. And that, in turn, will help the company achieve its objectives!
Of course, it's also important to congratulate the employee on all his or her successes, qualities, good attitudes and so on.
In short, it's a fine balancing act, in which you say what needs to be said, while opening up a constructive dialogue to build a solid relationship of trust.
For the employee
From the employee's point of view, the comments made at the annual performance review serve, among other things, to make the employee feel recognized for the work he or she has accomplished. You mention your qualities, your successes... all of which greatly encourages your commitment!
But, as we've seen, it's also important to point out the elements that are a little more lacking. In this respect, interview comments are powerful levers for progress.
Last but not least, this document can be used to formalize the objectives to be achieved, and thus intelligently guide the employee's way of working.
Examples of annual performance reviews
Example of a positive annual review comment
Your ability to exceed your quarterly targets while maintaining impeccable work quality is a real asset to the team. You have demonstrated inspiring leadership, particularly in managing Project X, where your proactive approach and attention to detail led to outstanding results.
In addition to your technical skills, you also contributed to team cohesion by sharing your knowledge and supporting your colleagues at critical moments. These results testify to your commitment and willingness to move projects forward.
🎯 The purpose of this comment: to highlight performance and encourage you to maintain this level of excellence. NB: there's no need to "force" yourself to identify areas for improvement if the employee seems truly irreproachable 😉.
Example of an annual performance review with areas for improvement
You've had a solid year, achieving your main objectives while ensuring excellent collaboration within the team. Your management of deadlines and clear communication with customers were particularly appreciated.
However, some complex situations highlighted opportunities for development, particularly in managing conflicts or unforeseen events. With targeted coaching, these skills can become a real lever for improving your overall performance. The coming year could be the ideal opportunity to work on these points and maximize your impact in high-pressure contexts.
��� The aim of this commentary: to congratulate and open up relevant prospects for improvement for both the employee and the company.
Example of an annual review comment if performance is inadequate
This year has been marked by difficulties in achieving certain key objectives.
However, your perseverance and commitment to progress are encouraging signs for the future. You have shown a real willingness to learn, as evidenced by your effort to master the Y tool.
It would be beneficial to explore together methods to better prioritize your tasks and organize your time, in order to optimize your results. I remain convinced that, with the right tools and a tailored coaching plan, you can regain positive momentum and achieve your goals.
🎯 The aim of this commentary: to provide honest feedback while encouraging effort and potential for improvement.
Example of an annual performance review for a new position
Your integration into the team has been very natural, and your contributions in the first few weeks have been remarkable. You quickly took charge of your assignments and demonstrated an ability to adapt that facilitated your transition to this position. Your enthusiasm and positive energy also had a motivating effect on your colleagues, creating a collaborative working environment. It's clear that you have the skills and attitude to excel in this role.
Let's continue to strengthen your technical expertise and broaden your responsibilities to maximize your impact.
🎯 The aim of this commentary: to value a successful integration, without forgetting to encourage ongoing development.
Example of an annual interview comment for an employee with stable performance
You continue to bring consistent value to the team thanks to your experience and reliability. Your expertise in your field is undeniable, and a valuable resource for your colleagues.
However, to keep progressing and avoid routine, it might be worth exploring new approaches or projects that step outside your comfort zone. This could enable you to acquire additional skills and renew your commitment to more strategic missions. You have all the potential to further expand your contribution and further inspire those around you.
🎯 The purpose of this comment: to recognize stability while encouraging innovation and diversification.
Example of an annual interview comment for a change in responsibilities
Taking on new responsibilities this year marked an important step in your career. You have risen to the challenge with professionalism and efficiency, notably by managing strategic decision-making in complex contexts. Your ability to mobilize your team and ensure smooth coordination has contributed to the success of several key projects.
However, this transition also requires adjustment, particularly in terms of delegation and stress management at critical moments. These aspects will be important levers to fully establish your role in this new dynamic.
🎯 The aim of this commentary: to support evolution and identify axes with a view to reinforcing the new skills required.
💡 Tip: why not use interview management software? Thanks to them, you can write your comments more easily, relying, among other things, on the performance data centralized in these solutions. In other words, you base your feedback on truly concrete facts. What's more, these tools simplify the ongoing monitoring of objectives.
Software examples:
- Skeely automates numerous operations linked to the management and animation of maintenance campaigns, including the production of reports and other feedback. Once the associated information has been collected in Skeely, statistical and GPEC functions enable exchanges to be translated into concrete actions (training, for example).
- Zest modernizes the annual appraisal, as the quantitative and qualitative performance of the employee is directly reflected in the Objectives or OKR functions. Your comments are therefore based on reliable data, making them more constructive. You can then track, directly in Zest, the achievement of the objectives set during these discussions.
8 mistakes to avoid when writing annual review comments
How do you write a good appraisal? On the one hand, by using the examples above, but also by avoiding the following mistakes:
- Being too vague: comments like "Good work this year" lack detail and frankly don't help the employee understand his or her strengths or areas for improvement.
- Focusing solely on negative or positive aspects : an entirely negative comment is demotivating, while an entirely positive comment gives the impression that there's nothing to improve (spoiler, this is rarely the case!).
- Make value judgments: avoid phrases like "You lack ambition " or "You're not cut out for this role ", which are subjective judgments that can be hurtful.
- Using ambiguous or passive-aggressive language: phrases such as "Perhaps you could try to do better " lack clarity... but also benevolence!
- Ignore the employee's aspirations: if you don't want to frustrate the employee, don't write comments without taking into account the discussions and ambitions expressed beforehand.
- Compare with other team members: pitting an employee against his or her colleagues creates a feeling of unfairness or unhealthy competition. And you distract attention from the individual progress of the employee concerned.
- Forgetting to include concrete suggestions: it's imperative that you offer concrete suggestions for development. Don't leave the employee in limbo!
- Failing to provide regular feedback: an annual performance review should not come as a surprise to the employee. If such exchanges only take place once a year, you run the risk of creating a gulf between the employee's perception and your own.
In short, good annual review comments could be characterized by these words: constructive, clear and encouraging.
What can we learn from annual performance reviews?
What is an example of a good appraisal comment? The one that, in the end, really corresponds to the employee's situation. That's where the added value of this exercise lies: personalizing feedback to make it constructive for both the employee and the company.
There are tools to help you in this task: they centralize all the data needed to share information that reflects reality.
In conclusion, annual performance reviews are not just a formality, but an opportunity to nurture the relationship of trust with the employee, encourage him or her to grow and prepare together for the challenges of tomorrow 🤝.
Article translated from French