Improve Employee Reviews to Produce Results

by Leonard Toenjes

Employee reviews are critical to the overall success of a construction business.
Leonard Toenjes presents a plan on why these are important and how they should be done. Keys include ensuring that they are based on goals, opening up communication between employee and employer and establishing credibility.

Q: I am a manager in construction and want to upgrade the employee review process. In the past, our reviews have been little more than a give-and-take between the employee and manager. What are some elements we should include in our review to ensure they produce results?

A: The first component of employee evaluation is a clearly defined set of goals.
However, the first task is making sure there are clearly defined goals for your company, be they strategic or operational. For example, some company goals may be based on reducing accidents, improving attendance, reducing downtime due to scheduling or material unavailability or any number of other company goals to make your firm more profitable and productive.

The next step is breaking the company goals down into the components that each individual can address in their particular job duties. This may involve several employees taking the time to evaluate the overall company structure and identify the employees that can best work toward achievement of specific items.

For example, there may be many separate operations and employees involved in scheduling issues. This could include shop foreman having tools and equipment ready for transport in working condition and moved to the job site at the proper time. It could include project managers and superintendents properly monitoring work and ordering from the proper, reliable suppliers in a timely manner.

As these outcomes are defined, establish quantifiable, measurable goals with specific completion times for each individual.
Put them in writing. Communicate them clearly. It is usually a good idea to take the time to discuss the goals to ensure employee understanding and acceptance.

It is not uncommon for the employee to state some reasons why specific goals can or cannot be met. This is a great opportunity to discuss overall operations and drill down to discover more about the day-to-day occurrences that you may not be aware of. This can result in some modified goals, not only for the individual in the meeting but for others in the company.

Stick to just a couple of realistic, clear goals that are achievable, but require the individual to grow and stretch to achieve them. Too many wild ideas will be frustrating and set the process up for failure. Weak, undefined, feel-good goals will undermine the credibility of the process. Keep the written, agreed-to goals on file.

It is usually best to hold the performance review goal setting meeting at a time away from salary review. For instance, if pay increases and bonuses are issued in December, perform the reviews in June or July.

This gives the individual time to understand and work toward achievement of the goals. It gives management an opportunity to see if there is any progress being made prior to making year end decisions about compensation.

This takes time. Planning company goals, defining the role each individual plays in achievement, communicating and modifying the individual components, monitoring progress, and calculating rewards deserves top management attention. Showing the employee their individual role in achieving their goals results in overall team success helps. If you make this process part of your corporate culture each year, employees will understand the importance of this process and the credibility of your efforts.

Do you have questions on construction human resources or safety? E-mail them to Leonard Toenjes at ltoenjes@agcstl.org or craig_barner@mcgraw-hill.com.
If Len picks your question, he will answer it in a future issue of Midwest Construction.)