Addressing Common Performance Review Challenges

If someone is surprised by the feedback they receive, this is a management failure. After witnessing multiple instances of this failure at Amazon, we realized our feedback mechanism was deeply flawed. So, we fixed it. In order for the organization to perform at its highest, employees need to know not only what is expected of them, but also how those expectations will be measured. Too often, managers assume that capable people will simply “figure things out,” but this is difficult and destined to fail without explicit expectations and continuous feedback. I remember the experience of an employee we can call “Melinda.” She had been a strong performer for two years before she transitioned into a new role on another team. She attacked the new opportunity with enthusiasm, working long hours and believing she was on the right track. Then, her manager expressed concerns about her performance and the criticism came as a shock. The feedback was vague, and there had been no regular check-ins or early signs to help her course-correct. This caused her motivation to suffer and her performance declined significantly. Eventually, she left the company. Afterward, we conducted a full review and we discovered that Melinda’s manager had never clearly articulated the expectations of the new role. Worse, her previous achievements had been disregarded in her evaluation. The system had failed her. This incident was not isolated. It illustrated a pattern. It revealed broader gaps in how we managed performance transitions and feedback loops. So, in response, we developed and deployed new mechanisms to ensure clarity from day one. We began requiring managers to explicitly define role expectations and conduct structured check-ins during an employee’s first 90 days in a new position. We also reinforced the cultural norm that feedback must be timely, specific, and actionable. These changes were rooted in a core principle of leadership: you have to make others successful too. Good management does not involve catching people off guard or putting them in “sink or swim” situations. When employees fail because expectations were unclear, that failure belongs to the manager. The best thing to do when you see those failures is to treat them as systems to improve. That’s how you build a culture of high performance.

As performance review season approaches, I've been reflecting on a conversation from over a decade ago that still sits with me today. During my review, my manager told me I "needed to work on my confidence." When I asked for clarification, she said, "Think about how [male colleague] would have handled this situation." I can't fully fault my manager - who was herself a woman. We all carry internalized biases that we've absorbed from years of working in systems that often value traditionally masculine behaviors. It's a stark reminder that unlearning these patterns requires conscious effort from all of us, regardless of gender. That moment crystallized something I've observed throughout my career: vague feedback often masks unconscious bias, particularly in performance reviews. "Lack of confidence" is frequently used as shorthand to describe women's leadership styles, while similar behavior in male colleagues might be viewed as "thoughtful" or "measured." Here's what I wish that manager had said instead: 🔹 "I'd like you to take the lead in proposing solutions to the team, rather than waiting to be called on." 🔹"Let's work on defending your decisions with data when faced with pushback from folks." 🔹"I noticed you often preface your ideas with "I think..." Let's practice delivering recommendations with clear rationale and conviction." 🔹"Here are specific techniques to influence cross-functional stakeholders more effectively." As leaders, we are responsible for being intentional and specific in our feedback. Vague critiques like "needs more confidence" or "should be more assertive" without concrete examples or actionable guidance don't help our reports grow – they perpetuate harmful stereotypes. To my fellow managers preparing for year-end reviews: 🔹Be specific about behaviors, not personality traits 🔹Provide clear examples and contexts 🔹Outline actionable steps for improvement 🔹Check your biases - are you applying the same standards across your team? Remember: The impact of your words may last far longer than the conversation itself. #Leadership #PerformanceReviews #UnconsciousBias #WomenInBusiness #ProfessionalDevelopment

🚨 The Performance Review Lie: What Your Employees REALLY Want to Tell You 🚨 After years of observing leadership failures and speaking with professionals across industries, I've noticed a disturbing pattern: people lie in performance reviews. 😔 Not because they're dishonest, but because they've learned that honesty gets punished. ⚠️ 🌟 BELIEVE in authentic feedback! 🌟 👉 "I'm satisfied with my current role" actually means... 💭 "I've given up asking for advancement because you promote based on politics, not performance." 🔥 👉 "No additional training needed" actually means... 🎯 "I've stopped requesting development because you always say 'budget constraints' but somehow find money for executive retreats." 💸 👉 "Communication is fine" actually means... 💬 "I've learned that challenging your ideas gets me labeled as 'not aligned with company vision.'" 🚧 📢 What They're NOT Telling You: 🔥 Your "360 feedback" is a joke Nobody gives honest input because they know it gets back to managers who hold grudges. 😞 🔥 Your performance metrics are broken You measure what's easy to count, not what actually drives results or innovation. 📊 🔥 Your development plans are empty promises "We'll revisit this next quarter" has become code for "never going to happen." 🚪 💰 The Real Cost 💰 Every sanitized performance review represents: 🧠 Missed coaching opportunities 💵 Wasted potential sitting right in front of you 📉 Talented people mentally checking out 💔 Trust erosion that takes years to rebuild ✅ Getting Honest Performance Conversations Smart leaders: ✓ Ask "What barriers are preventing your best work?" instead of "Are you meeting expectations?" 🤔 ✓ Share their own challenges and growth areas first 🪞 ✓ Create psychological safety where disagreement is valued, not punished🛡️ ✓ Focus on future potential, not just past performance 🚀 💡 Here's the hard question: If your employees could give you a performance review without consequences, what would they say about YOUR leadership? 🤯 The people sitting across from you in those reviews aren't the problem. They're protecting themselves from a system that punishes truth-telling. 💯 Start modeling the vulnerability you want to see. Share your own areas for improvement. Ask better questions. Create space for real conversation. 🗣️ Your next performance review cycle is an opportunity to revolutionize your leadership. Will you take it? ⚡ ✨ I help organizations and teams transform trust into a high-performance tool through the BELIEVE Framework program. Reach out to me if you need to Lead Boldly, Build Boldly, Grow Boldly. I am here to help. ✨ #PerformanceReviews #WorkPlaceTruth #OrganizationalCulture

Maybe it’s time to start over One of the CEOs I’m coaching recently called me, exasperated. He’d just come out of another round of mid-year performance reviews. He described the ritual we all know too well: Goals set in January that everyone forgot by March. Feedback requests nobody wanted to give - or receive. Self-reviews that sounded like a mix of sales pitches and confessions. Calibration sessions behind closed doors where people who barely knew the work decided who was “exceeds,” “meets,” or “below.” Development plans destined to sit untouched in the HR system. “And then,” he said, “we all acted surprised that nothing has changed.” He paused. “Why are we still doing this?” It was the question that most leaders think but rarely voice. I asked him: “Do you believe this process is actually salvageable?” There was a long silence. “I don’t know,” he admitted. “We’ve tried everything - simplifying the form, shortening the cycle, training managers to be better coaches. It still feels broken.” Then he said something that made me sit up straight: “What if we just started over? Blow it up if we have to. Let’s build something that actually changes behavior, not just records it. Because honestly, when was the last time a performance review changed how you or I showed up the next day?” That’s when it clicked. This CEO didn’t care about performance reviews. He cared about performance. He cared about the conversations people actually need to have: The hard truths no one says out loud. The recognition people crave. The clarity on where they stand and how to grow. Making all their work visible - not just what someone remembers from last month. It’s about designing a performance culture where feedback is real-time, usable, and impactful, not an annual (or semi-annual) box-ticking exercise. So here’s my question for every leader reading this: Why do we keep pretending this broken system will suddenly start working? If you could start from scratch, what would you build instead? What if we designed something that: Made feedback an everyday habit, not an annual ritual. Valued growth as much as outcomes. Treated people like adults who want clarity, not just scores. Captured real-time data to truly see everyone’s impact. Tied pay to market value and role scope - instead of using flawed ratings to justify it. That CEO stopped tweaking around the edges. He’s building something new, and he’s given his HR team permission to rethink everything. It may be imperfect at first. But it will be built for how the business needs to excel. And that’s what matters in today's workplace - impact, not activity. If you’ve ever blown up your performance process, or even thought about it, I’d love to hear your story. Maybe this is the year we finally stop pretending that performance reviews actually drive performance.