‘All the Feels’ Enable All the Performance, Productivity at Work

Continuous, agile performance management’s replacement of the traditional, annual review is SO 2016.

There’s no more structured process or need for employees’ nerves to shake, rattle and roll as they approach their boss’s office every 365 days, but that’s nothing new. Continuous performance management has evolved into new world of high performance that demands much more than increased frequency and leadership agility.  

The old ways have been put to rest thanks to real-time feedback and coaching, all which foster empathy within the organization. Empathetic leaders are able to understand their employees’ goals and play up their strengths, which according to Gallup, boosts employee engagement and confidence, minimizes turnover and makes the company’s bottom line much stronger overall.

“The best way for people to grow and develop is to identify how they most naturally think, feel, and behave – their talents – then build on those talents to create strengths, or the ability to consistently provide near-perfect performance,” Gallup reports.

It takes empathy to truly see what your employees are good at, and it takes excellent leadership to recognize their strengths. From there, leaders should manage their people’s performance in a way that allows them to no longer be a boss, but instead, be a coach.

HCI RESEARCH: Building a Coaching Culture

Today’s most effective continuous performance management involves authentic feedback in the moment, acknowledgement among colleagues rather than only from the top down, and deep, critical thinking that promotes opportunity for learning.

“All employees have a unique combination of talents, knowledge, skills and practice that help them do what they do best every day,” according to Gallup. “These strengths provide employees and employers with their greatest opportunities for success. What leaders do – or fail to do – with this workforce potential has enormous implications for a company’s future.”

So, are your organization’s leaders practicing empathy? Coaching their people from good to great?

The most modern performance management makes these two practices – empathy and coaching – a must for leaders, and your entire organization, to meet the highest goals and get the most gamechanging results.

Ben Bratt is the Principal and Founder of The Team Effectiveness Project, and he’s coached teams for more than 25 years. When it comes to empathy within the walls of the workplace, he says leading a team means dealing with intense feelings and vulnerability. Building a solid, conducive team is no easy task.

Ben’s advice for the most effective, empathy-driven leadership and performance management?

“Let’s extend to others on our teams the grace we wish were extended to us, and then dig in and do hard work together,” he said. “Let’s get clear on the things that aren’t, interact in healthy ways, and influence others for shared success.”

BLOG: Moving Teams Forward with Clarity, Leadership and Empathy

Empathy is a crucial performance management and empowerment tool that today’s organizational leaders cannot go without. Join HCI and Betterworks CHRO Bianca McCann for the March 15 webcast, “Drive a High-Performance Organization with Empathy at the Core,” to learn what differences empathy can make for productivity and potential.