How to Ace a Performance Review

Nervous about your next job review? A book from Harvard Business Review could help you make a good impression on the powers that be. How to be Good at Performance Appraisals: Simple, Effective, Done Right (Harvard Business Review Press/available now), by Dick Grote, is written for the folks doing the evaluations, which makes it an effective blueprint that you, as an employee, can use to find out how your supervisor plans to size you up. If you understand where management is coming from, and respond accordingly, the evaluation should become more of a positive, collaborative experience and less of an uncomfortable or even contentious one. Ultimately, those who present themselves as well-rounded professionals, focused on helping their organization achieve high-level strategic goals—as opposed to just doing their jobs—will emerge as winners. Grote is president of Grote Consulting Corp., which helps organizations improve performance-management processes. For more about the book, click here.