Performance reviews are about as welcome as a torrential downpour on the first day of spring before you've had any coffee. They're draining, tedious, and full of paperwork.
Think back to the most recent performance review you had. In most cases, it's an unpleasant experience for all parties involved. Managers dread performing them, especially if their subordinates aren't making progress in their work. What's more, employees are stressed out just thinking about them. And if you're in the HR department, you've probably been in the office every waking hour in an attempt to get all the performance reviews completed on time.
The good news is, there are ways to make this process easier. For those of you who are currently responsible for coordinating the performance management process at your workplace, we've put together ten email templates that will help you streamline the process and ensure that everybody has a smooth ride through this year's review cycle.
What is a performance management process?
Most people discussing performance management tend to approach it from a very narrow point of view — you know, as an examination of individual performance within a company — but there's a lot more to it.
Performance management is the method of assessing, evaluating, and improving the performance of individual employees, departments, and the organization as a whole. It's an integrated communication framework that keeps the gears of your organization running smoothly and efficiently.
Performance management, when done correctly, helps you achieve greater efficiency and productivity. Done wrong, It can lead to poor work results, damaged communication, and even demoralized employees.
Key Benefits of the Performance Management Process
Here's how the performance management process improves business operations and helps employees perform better.
Enhances employee engagement and motivation
Continuous performance management helps nurture the delicate, fragile relationship between employee and employer. It ensures that your company remains a welcoming work environment for your most valued assets: the people who make it a success on a day-to-day basis.
Performance management creates a culture of trust, support, and encouragement. Employees are far more likely to engage with the company if they know that their managers and supervisors genuinely care about them. The happier and engaged your employees are, the more productive they will be. This means companies that have higher levels of employee engagement are inevitably going to be more profitable.
Boosts talent retention
There are many reasons why employees leave their organization, and a lot of them are beyond your control. There are, however, certain variables that an optimum performance management process can help improve, which include:
- lack of communication
- unreasonably heavy workloads
- uncertainty about expectations
- absence of recognition
- limited opportunities for advancement
Your employees are the backbone of your business. They've been with you through thick and thin, and they've helped you to build your business into the money-making machine that it is today. Without your staff, your company would just be a hollow shell of an idea.
That's why it's absolutely crucial to have a performance management system in place that makes everybody feel as though they're an equally valuable asset to the company. Not only that, but it's also essential that those being managed have a say in their own goals and how those goals can be achieved. Autonomy, motivation, and a sense of purpose are key components to employee retention.
Examples of Performance Management Email Templates
Now that we've got the basic stuff out of the way, let's talk about the real reason that you're here: performance management email templates. Here are five sample emails to help you structure your upcoming performance review session.
#1 Performance review email announcement
Hi [First Name],
We're thrilled to let you know that we'll be starting the Performance Review process soon.
Now that we're three months into the new year, we thought it would be a great time to see how our objectives for this year are faring. We're sure this review will be helpful to you in understanding your responsibilities and growth potential here at [company].
Currently, we're hard at work on some revisions to the performance management process. So we'll be sending out an update email with more information soon.
If you have any questions or there's anything at all you're unclear about, don't hesitate to reach out to your manager, or you can get in touch with me directly.
Kind regards,
[Your Name]
#2 Email outlining the details of the process
Hi [First Name],
We've officially begun our annual/quarterly performance review process as of [date].
As promised, here are the specifics of the process:
All full-time employees must complete self-evaluation forms before their managers can carry out the standard performance review process. This will be a familiar concept for most of you, but just in case it isn't, we've included a quick guide for your convenience. The deadline for self-evaluation forms is [date].
We will be reaching out to all reviewers this week about the number of assessment recipients they have. Managers should have reviewed all eligible subordinates' performance and provided feedback on them by [date].
A debriefing will be held shortly with all team managers about the recent changes made to the performance review process.
If you have any questions or concerns, please don't hesitate to shoot me an email, and I'll do my best to answer your queries as soon as possible.
Kind regards,
[Your Name]
#3 Email to remind employees of the deadline
Hi [First Name],
Just wanted to check-in and make sure you're still working on your performance review. You have [Y] days to submit it to your manager, so get cracking!
If you need any help with the review itself or our company's new evaluation policies, let me know, and I'll be happy to help you out.
Kind regards,
[Your Name]
#4 Email to manager to designate someone to review
Hi [First Name],
You've been confirmed as the performance review moderator for two employees this year. To get yourself acquainted with their work, you should reach out to [employee A] and [employee B] and arrange a meeting. You'll also be receiving their employee files and self-evaluation forms in due time.
When you feel like you've got a good read on each of their strengths and weaknesses, scheduling (and attending!) their final review sessions is the next step. By virtue of this assignment, you will be required to set expectations for the employee(s) assigned to you.
If you run into any difficulties along the way, feel free to get in touch with the HR department.
Kind regards,
[Your Name]
#5 Email to both employees and managers to express your gratitude for their cooperation during the process.
Hi [First Name],
Thanks so much for being a part of this year's/quarter's performance review. The insight you have provided will help us build a better future for everyone involved and will definitely be a valuable contribution to our plans for next year.
The HR team will now conduct an analysis based on each employee's performance report. We'll be sure to keep you up-to-date on salary or benefits changes after they're finalized.
Kind regards,
[Your Name]
Performance Management can be Tough to Organize, but it's Worth the Effort.
If you're like most business owners, then you've got more than enough on your plate already. What with managing your budget, keeping an eye on the bottom line, ensuring sales are up, and - of course - actually running your business. So why would you want to worry about conducting continuous performance management sessions?
That's because performance management is far too important to be ignored. Your people are your biggest asset, and it's your job to make sure they're all engaged and constantly improving. With an effective performance management system in place, you can make your employees feel appreciated and encourage an environment of shared growth.
