Most of us know we should have an annual checkup, but do we actually do it? If we have one every year, do we actually know if it is complete? And do we understand the tests and examinations we are having done? Most of us will answer “no” to at least one of those questions. However, there is no excuse for not having a thorough yearly exam.

Of course, the above questions relate to an annual MEDICAL checkup, but an annual checkup of your managerial team is nearly as important. Yet the performance review process at work is sometimes more stressful than an annual medical exam, and the results are difficult to interpret.

Want to reduce the stress of performance reviews on your organization and get the best reporting system from your own team of specialists?

For the last several years, the economic downturn has allowed many employers the opportunity to defer the annual performance review. In many companies where salaries were reduced or frozen, and many employers equate performance reviews with salary treatment, there has been no urgency to review their employees.

For many employees, this is actually okay, since the performance review is one of the more stressful conversations they annually have with their manager. One school of thought might be that “as long as I still have my job, my performance must be good”. That may or may not be true.

For the manager, it can be equally as stressful. Many managers “go it alone” in terms of developing performance feedback. They wait until the last minute, fill out the form themselves without talking to anyone else the employee works with, and the employee (and the manager) get surprised with some of the feedback. In some cases, and many of us have had a boss do this, they ask you to fill out the review form for them.

Obviously, if you had your annual medical exam done this way, it would be a wasted exercise. If you have had a thorough medical exam lately, you know that it is a summation of feedback and measurements taken by many people who are specialists in their field. The reports are thorough and you can drill down into any aspect of your medical condition to get more details. It is no different than being able to drill into your financial reports, your asset reports, your safety reports, and your headcount reports.

Why shouldn’t you have the same ability to understand how all your managers are performing and be able to drill down to individual manager performance? How can you get your own team of specialists — bosses, managers, peers, and employees — to become the source of performance feedback in your organization?

The Checkpoint™ Management System allows your specialists to assess each of your managers in less than 30 minutes so you can gain:

• COMPREHENSIVE insight into the strengths and weaknesses of your management team in areas of communication, adaptability, and leadership skills.
• ANONYMOUS insight from peers, direct reports, bosses and managers to help identify gaps in perceptions across various roles.
• An action plan and roadmap to improve performance for every one of your managers.

How does this impact your bottom line?

A study of engagement in average American organizations shows that 55% of employees are disengaged and produce an average of 50% less revenue.  By giving your managers greater insight into their own strengths and surfacing self improvement opportunities, you equip them to increase their employees’ engagement and achieve higher standards of productivity.