4 Ways to Successfully Develop Employees Year-Round

Successful performance management for individual
employees and the organization involves activities that
ensure goals are met efficiently and effectively. It’s an
ongoing process essential to achieving the company
mission that is much more than just an end-of-year
performance review.
In an effort to keep employees engaged in their work
and help them grow into leaders within the company,
invest in them (and they’ll invest in you). Here are four
ways to successfully develop employees throughout the
year:
1. Set (and update) quarterly goals.
The key to actively developing employees is to set
relevant, achievable goals. Rather than setting and
discussing employee goals on an annual basis, optimize
the development and review process by creating
quarterly goals. Not only are these goals easier to set,
but the results of those goals are easier to see.
Quarterly goals are the quickest, easiest way for
employees to derive meaning from what they do every
day. As such, creating achievable goals and monitoring
employee progress is crucial. With the rate at which we
do business, some goals may no longer be relevant.
Revisiting these goals every quarter highlights which
goals need to be updated, ensuring that individual work
goals are still applicable.
Related: 4 Ways to Help Employees Set Better Goals
2. Offer opportunities for individual growth.
Employees want training. In fact, Glassdoor’s 2014
Employment Confidence Survey of nearly 1,000 U.S.
employees found that 63 percent of employees believe
learning new skills or receiving special training is most
important to advancing their career. Providing coaching
and development activities throughout the year is an
employer’s best bet to create a culture of growth within
the workplace. To ensure continuous growth and
improve productivity, equip employees with the tools
they need to function at peak performance.
For starters, consider creating a mentorship program in
which new hires work closely with a seasoned employee
within their department. Doing so will get new
employees on the right track sooner. Additionally,
develop current employees by offering regular training
programs or bringing in industry professionals for “lunch
and learns.”
Most importantly, encourage employees to seek
professional development opportunities outside of the
workplace. Employees that aim to advance their skills in
their own time will likely become great leaders and
should be recognized for their efforts.
3. Hold frequent review meetings.
Although performance management should be a
continuous process, only 2 percent of employers provide
ongoing feedback to their employees, a 2013 survey of
803 HR professionals by the Society for Human
Resource Management (SHRM) revealed. How can we
expect our employees to improve if we only offer them
constructive feedback once or twice a year?
In place of the year-end performance review
that employers and employees both tend to dread, opt
for a more frequent, informal review process. The
purpose of the review shouldn’t be to evaluate
employees, as that is the aspect of performance reviews
that causes the most anxiety. Rather, it should focus on
developing employees.
Try asking employees questions that target where there
is room for improvement, such as, “What skills would
you most like to improve on?” or “What can I do to help
you?” Reviewing employee progress more frequently not
only makes the process less intimidating, but it can help
employers and employees set better goals for the future.
Related: Stop Delaying: 3 Surefire Ways to Do Employee
Reviews Properly
4. Automate the review process.
Automating portions of the performance review process
can help employers and employees alike by making
more time for other aspects of employee reviews.
Possibly the biggest advantage of implementing
technology into the review process is making it so much
easier for employees and their managers to track and
measure performance year-round.
Say goodbye to the days of trying to scramble a year’s
worth of necessary data for performance reviews.
Automating the process makes for a more efficient
performance review and fosters a comprehensive
development process.
Related: Make Performance Reviews Less Dreadful
With These 5 Tips