Do your employees understand performance expectations?

Research shows that only 1 in 5 employees understand what their employer is expecting from them when their performance is reviewed and only 21% reported that that always knew what their employer expected from them.

The findings raise the question of “how can managers expect high performance from team members if they do not know what is expected or how they will be measured?”

A lack of metrics to show targets for individual and team performance further compounds this knowledge gap. 

A lack of goal setting and clarity on expectations also impacts upon opportunities for career growth. An employee who does not fully know what is expected of them will struggle to know if they are on track for career progression.

Interestingly employees at smaller organisations have a clearer understanding of performance expectations than individuals at larger employers. This could be because communication and a more hands on management approach are prevalent in those environments.

What can employers do to ensure performance expectations are clear?

Consider the following actions to build up the knowledge of your workforce of the expectations on them individually and collectively as a team:

• Implement regular employee and manager 1-2-1s
• Set individual and team goals
• Explain to employees how their performance contributes to overall business objectives
• Track business objectives throughout the year
• Share data on how the organisation is progressing against business objectives so employees know if you are on track to achieve targets. If the organisation is not on track, then agree actions with the team to ensure objectives will be achieved
• Document career progression routes with mapped out learning, training and development opportunities
• Undertake regular career conversations with team members

Source: Gavin Parrott