What are the top performance management trends and best practices in 2022?

To help you adopt the best performance management approaches that are current, we asked CEOs and business leaders this question for their best insights. From offering the chance for mutual criticism to providing an incentive plan for professional development, there are several trends in performance management in 2022 that best apply to the culture of the current workforce. 

Here are 11 performance management trends and best practices in 2022:

• Offer the Chance for Mutual Criticism
• Keep Flexibility at The Forefront
• Conduct Regular One-to-One Meetings With Staff
• Use Mobile Apps for Team Management
• Monitor and Track Performance Through Continuous Feedback
• Avoid Micromanaging Remote Employees and Focus on Results
• Be a Mentor to Your Employees
• Encourage Remote Employees To Find Their Best Balance
• Use Specific Key Performance Indicators to Measure Performance
• Recognize Your Employees for Their Work
• Provide an Incentive Plan for Professional Development

Offer The Chance for Mutual Criticism

One best practice for great performance management is to actually invite your staff to critique your own performance as a manager. Even if staff don’t always take you up on the offer, showing them that you’re open to it is a huge boost of morale and security for a team. When a leader is secure enough in their own role that they can take on criticism from their team, it reinforces a culture of honesty, openness and security, which is the foundation of any healthy and productive working environment.

Stephen Light, Nolah Mattress

Keep Flexibility at The Forefront

As the last few years have shown us, it is imperative to trust your employees enough to be flexible with work arrangements. At the center of your business philosophy, uphold the mission of ensuring your employees’ happiness in their work life balance and show them that you are always willing to work with them when personal circumstances arise. When employees feel valued and seen as humans in the workforce, not just laborers, their work attitude adjusts to a much more optimistic one, because they feel taken care of by their company. Not only  does this improve employee outlook, but it also helps to retain talented employees in the long run.

Guna Kakulapati, CureSkin

Conduct Regular One-to-One Meetings With Staff 

Successful leaders use one-to-one meetings as a valuable strategy. These quick weekly check-ins can have a significant impact on staff performance and results if performed appropriately. One-on-ones provide you the opportunity to get to know your team members extremely well, allowing you to gain a greater understanding of their thoughts and feelings. This will allow you to improve the overall functioning of your organization and generate outcomes.

Dawn Myers, Guided Leadership Solutions

Use Mobile Apps for Team Management

As remote and hybrid workforces continue to become the new norm, we will continue to see team management conducted using mobile applications. Many managers today are taking advantage of the many benefits of mobile apps that reduce the time needed to check messages and correspond with team members, whether they are sitting on their patio, working at a local coffee shop, or attending meetings at the office. Using mobile technologies to effectively manage your team productivity is a great way to stay connected throughout your workday, wherever you find yourself.

Rachel Roff, Urban Skin Rx

Monitor and Track Performance Through Continuous Feedback

Continuous feedback is one of the best ways to help ensure that employees are consistently growing and improving within your company. It’s a much better way to monitor and track employee performance than a bi-annual performance review. It’s particularly useful when it comes to underperforming employees, as the more frequent touchpoints help to keep them on track for improvement. You’re more likely to see quick progress when feedback happens routinely and frequently than when check-ins are spaced out over months. For high performers, it can help them stay engaged at work as you’re able to consistently set and reset goals.

Mark Pierce, Cloud Peak Law Group

Avoid Micromanaging Remote Employees and Focus on Results

When acting as a manager in a work-from-home environment, make sure that you aren’t over managing your employees minute to minute tasks. Working from home is considered a huge benefit by most employees, as it gives them the freedom to better structure their day to fit both their work duties and their personal lives. When managers attempt to exercise an overly-watchful eye, such as requiring that an employees mouse or keyboard not stay ideal for a set amount of time, the result is that rather than improving performance what you will likely get are employees finding creative ways to appear like they are working, thus wasting everyone’s time. Give your employees the benefit of the doubt and put the majority of your focus on results rather than process.

Anthony Martin, Choice Mutual

Be a Mentor to Your Employees

A mentoring culture between managers and employees is becoming an essential mandate for high-performing workplaces. Having a mentoring or coaching mentality means giving real-time feedback and acting when the information is fresh. The mentoring culture is a trend that helps to instill trust among employees and their managers; employees are more receptive to constructive feedback, and their performance improves. This proactive approach allows employees to leverage their strengths, and you will see more engagement and productivity.

Georgi Todorov, ThriveMyWay

Encourage Remote Employees To Find Their Best Balance 

For remote employees, I aim to ensure that my employees feel comfortable working from home and striking a balance that feels right for them. I encourage my team to take time to get outside during the work day, whether it is a quick walk around the block or a lunch eaten at a park. We prioritize this time by encouraging employees to block off these little breaks in their calendars, so that they feel they have time to set work down and truly take a break. These breaks seem to chop up the day, so employees feel energized when coming back to work. It also helps them knowing that their company wishes for them to prioritize some self care, which makes them care about their work more and keeps them even more motivated.

Chandler Rogers, Relay

Use Specific Key Performance Indicators to Measure Performance

One performance management trend or best practice is using Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to measure employee performance. KPIs are specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound goals that help organizations track progress and identify areas for improvement. By setting KPIs and tracking progress towards them, businesses can get a clear picture of how well employees are performing and where improvements need to be made. Additionally, KPIs can help motivate employees by providing a tangible way to measure their progress and see the results of their efforts. When used correctly, KPIs can be an invaluable tool for performance management.

Meyr Aviv, iMoving

Recognize Your Employees for Their Work

One of the best performance management methods I have found is recognizing employees for their work. Rather than having one off performance reviews every 3-6 months, implementing small incentive based bonuses has ensured a more active management style. This method has also helped increase the overall productivity by 15% at our company and significantly raised the energy in our company culture. Having a reward based approach to performance management will ensure a more efficient work environment and will showcase positive reinforcement as the norm in your business.

Scott Annan, MyCube

Provide an Incentive Plan for Professional Development

At a time when the average employee stays with you for only four years, it’s crucial to appreciate loyal team members – or build back employee loyalty. Quick money fixes, cake, or a mention in a meeting often don’t work — as  we have learned from our team. Instead, we provide an incentive plan that supports the professional development that an individual needs to reach career fulfillment with us. After that, we assign them varying commitments based on their tenure, contribution, and interests.

Jon Torres, Jon Torres