To be successful, employee feedback should not be an annual or even quarterly event. It should be a routine part of a manager’s day.
In the same way, managers should make documentation of employee performance, behavior and discipline a regular habit.
This documentation can be informal as handwritten notes tossed in an employee’s file, but they should always include the dates and names of all parties involved. As with any documentation, stick to the facts and stay objective. Avoid opinions.
Strong documentation is especially important if an employee or ex-employee ever files a legal complaint saying his or her termination or discipline was based on illegal discrimination (race, age, gender, disability, religion, etc.). Sound, ongoing documentation by management will prove that performance—not bias—was the reason for the firing.
A manager’s documentation should be built on three basic principles:
1. Immediate. Memory is a s...(register to read more)
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